Fourth time's the Charm
by Sasukeluva 4eva
Summary: The first time is always the worst... always the most unbearable... not for Sakura Haruno's case. When a relic from her past suddenly appears with one sole intention...RAPE! What will she do to stop him! Please R&R!
1. Prologue

a/n: Yeah, this is just another project I started (quite a while back, but I never had the time to write it up) to fill in the for the absence of '

_**Chasing Your Shadow**_**/s' lack thereof of chapters; as noted in chapter 6 (under 7 because of the prologue), my computer has crashed and therefore is out of commission, and will not be back for several days, before I then have to recover my files (fanfics and all… TT_TT), so yeah, Kami-sama is not looking upon me too kindly at the moment… I write this from my mother's computer, just to fill in the gap! XD**

**Hope this is substantial for a prologue (of sorts), and I warn you, the writing purview will change; the prologue is in my P.O.V., but the rest of the story will be in Sakura's. Enjoy, and arigato gozaimasu! **

**(NOTE: This story may be put on hold due to the fact that my rule is to only write two fics at a time, and once my computer is up and running, I have to finish working on both the next chapter of **_**'Chasing Your Shadow'**_** AND a oneshot I am currently working on [which mind you is almost complete…].)**

**Disclaimer: I hate to say this, but I do not own NARUTO; all rights reserved go to my sempai, Kishimoto-sensei. Sasuke, however, is MINE!! XD**

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**~Fourth time's the charm~**

**Sasuke x Sakura fanfic lemon**

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**_Prologue_**

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Within my lifetime, I have been forced into submission, raped, four times; the first was on the basis to keep me quiet, and the first was the most unbearable; on that night, whatever could be claimed "pure" within me was thoroughly ripped apart, searing pain unimaginable my reprimand.

The second was out of sheer need, the conservative want to drive out any accumulating frustration; for his sadistic pleasure to see me writhe and scream in futility.

The third was to make me talk, an attempt to make me confess upon the location of my closest friend, the person which "that man" and his group were searching for; for reasons unknown to me.

And the fourth time…that's for you to guess.

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**a/n: How was that?? Okay??**

**I know it's a bit dull at the moment, and REALLY short, but I am working on it, trust me! In the middle of chapter one at the moment, but there should only really be about six in total; prologue, chapter one, two, three, four and an epilogue. Hope you don't hate me for not updating on my other fics!! XD**

**Please review!!**

**Arigatou!!**


	2. Dreaded encounter Loss of all innocence

**a/n: Hey! This is the continuation I suppose you can call it, to the prologue; chapter 1! Another four to go till this story is finished! Anyways, on with the show!**

**Disclaimer: Yeah, you know the drill; I don't own Naruto, and I hopefully never will. He doesn't bathe until the Blue Moon rolls around! XP**

**Sasuke Uchiha, however, is another matter entirely! XD**

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Chapter 1

Dreaded encounter; loss of all innocence

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_**(Play Naruto Shippuden OST 'Despair' when you read this part of the story!)**_

"Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaarrrggh!"

'_How did this happen…?'_

"Heh… It looks like you really _were_ a virgin after all. Saving yourself for someone special, or has it always been for me, perhaps?"

'Why…why did it have to be _me_…?'

"A-hah…ah! Stop it… leave me _alone_! It hurts you bastard, _it__hurts_!"

'_Onegai… onegai! Just… disappear… from my life, __**everything**__, just leave me in peace! I don't need you constantly haunting me with your presence; absence, in person, __**alike**__. JUST LEAVE ME BE!'_

"Gomen, no can do; after all, this is the most effective way to ensure your silence. You _did_ see something you shouldn't have. Naughty-naughty, Sakura-_chan_."

As he plunged deeper and deeper into her throbbing sex, which ached severely after her hymen had been ruptured by force, Sakura scrunched up her face in agony, tears spilling from the corners of her eyes, landing soundlessly on the plush cushions beneath her; the smell of incense and sweat made Sakura's stomach turbulent, and the sounds of her weak whimpers of protest and the slight creaking of the bed's springs echoed loudly in her ears.

In her mind, everything was hazy, undefined, forgotten; it was blank, like a thick layer of snow had suddenly materialised out of no where, or a layer of sleet, fog, that had made itself at home in every crevice of her entire being. Sakura couldn't function; she was simply… numb. Her screams, her pleas, all fell upon deaf ears, or were just… ignored, pushed aside so that nothing could interfere, prevent, what was happening this very instant. To her. Why her? She did not know; all she knew was that this was punishment, _her_ punishment, for witnessing, for _seeing_ something that she ultimately should not have; for being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Maybe if she hadn't been _there_, maybe if she had just gone _straight__home_, this _never_ would have happened, wouldn't _be_ happening; but it was already _far__too__late_ for anything to change, go back to what could be considered normal. Sakura had lost more than her innocence, what truly defined her from everyone else, but she had lost all peace of mind, her sanity itself; whatever hope she had had of _finally_ moving on from _him_ was lost, torn to pieces that were never again feasible, could not be repaired, put back together.

No, she was doomed, fated one might have said, to love _him_ for all eternity; something about that thought brought little meant comfort, the rest… the rest brought unease, heartache, and another wave of tears, which spilt over until Sakura could no longer define anything, _his_ overly handsome features blurred and obscured beyond recognition on every angle, and in this form Sakura could truly make out the demon that overtook, destroyed, and inhabited her former love's body; there was nothing left of _that__man_, or rather the _boy_ she used to know oh so well, or at least, at the time she _thought_ she knew him.

Now Sakura could see that time really _doesn't_ heal _all_ wounds, nor does it mean that the person she once loved would remain the same as they were at one point in both of their lives'. No, time had done anything but that, and admitting that alone didn't do it justice; time had warped his mind, demented it so badly that it was beyond irreparable, leaving _this_ in it's wake. A demon, a monster, a _true_ shinobi; cruel, calculating, unfeeling, indifferent to another's pain and suffering, completely and utterly apathetic.

But most of all, powerful, lethal and an enormous threat to Sakura, and not just in the enemy sense; he was a danger t every shred of humanity that remained in the rosette, weakening her heart, her mind, her resolve. Everything that she had worked so hard to obtain, achieve, could easily be flattened, washed out, next to the superior male atop her; he could destroy her without lifting a finger, simply because he held her heart in the palm of his hand, and could just as easily crush it with his fist, playing her like a fiddle, deceiving her, to his heart's content (if he has one), before disposing of her.

She was just _too_ easy to manipulate, control, play, when it came down to _him_ in the end; she had no will of her own whenever she was with and or around him. At the end of the day, Sakura would always be his marionette, his puppet to manipulate in whatever way he saw fit, simply because her heart, her traitorous heart, was a slave to him in every way. Which entailed that her entire being could be used and abused by him, and she had no power, no _heart_, to prevent it. Simply because she was his puppet, his toy, his love-torn slave.

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_Flashback_

_Sakura's long, luscious pink locks bounced behind her cheerfully as she turned down an alleyway, a shortcut to her apartment, which was located across from the village's town centre, on the outskirts of Konoha. The problem with the alleyway though was the fact that it ran straight through the red light district, one to which went obliviously observed by the Hokage; that Hokage being a blond baka with cerulean eyes and three whiskers adorning each cheek. Sakura couldn't help but smile at the thought of Naruto __**finally**__ achieving his biggest ambition, his dream, to become one of the future Hokage of the Village Hidden in the Leaves. _

_Just watching him in training under Tsunade-shishou was enthralling, but to see him be anointed as the 6__th__ Hokage (Rokudaime), and how his face and eyes lit up until they were ablaze with undeniable happiness? The memory alone brought tears of happiness and good will to Sakura's emerald green orbs, which were glowing with excitement. She had earlier met up with Hinata, whom was now happily married to her childhood crush and Sakura's best friend, and had found out she (Hinata) was indeed pregnant with Naruto's first child. _

_Hinata was so shocked and ecstatic that she did a typically Hinata-ish thing; she fainted, with a beautiful smile on her face, tears lining her thick, black lashes. After she had calmed down, they went and saw Naruto in person, whom happened to be talking casually with Kakashi-sensei and Tsunade-sama, his new advisors after Homura and Koharu passed on suddenly. _

"_What?! Are you __**SERIOUS**__?!" Naruto had half squealed half yelled, his excitement getting the better of him._

"_Tsunade baa-chan, Tsunade baa-chan! Check again, to be sure! Onegai?!" _

"_Argh, I heard you the first time Naruto, I'm not deaf, nor am I senile, teinousha!" Tsunade hollered angrily, slamming her fist down on Naruto's expensive mahogany desk, __**HARD**__. Luckily, the only damage was a long crack line through the centre, easily covered by Naruto's accumulating paperwork, and natural mess (there were ramen cups __**EVERYWHERE**__!). Placing a hand on Hinata's stomach gingerly, where the womb was located, Tsunade then let the familiar green glow of her medical ninjutsu take over, scanning until she reached the same conclusion as Sakura had, therefore confirming it with the number one hyperactive knuckleheaded ninja himself. _

_Smiling, Tsunade turned to Naruto, and nodded curtly, now beaming at him as she said, "Yes, it is true. It seems your wife has indeed conceived. You're going to be a father, Naruto."_

_From there, there was a dead-still silence… overtaken by his loud 'Whoopee's!' and 'Oh my Kami's!' , Naruto running haphazardly around the room, throwing his messily stacked paperwork in the air, and kissing __**everyone**__ in the room, including poor Kakashi-sensei, whom was currently etching his way towards the door, pale as a ghost that had died three times over. _

"_I'm gonna be a dad, I'm gonna be a __**DAD**__!" Naruto squealed, bouncing on the spot and squeezing the living daylights out of Hinata, whom was cherry red at the contact. Seriously, they've had __**SEX**__, and she's all flustered over a not-so-simple-'cause-it's-Naruto hug? Sheesh, redefine typical much?!_

_Once everything had settled, they all headed to Ichiraku's (a/n: … typical…) to celebrate, friends and family present at the festivities. _

"_Congrats, baka!" Kiba bellowed in an obviously pissed-off-his-rack fashion, stumbling forward to throw a friendly arm around Naruto's shoulders, and began singing an incoherent slurring of Kami-sama knows what. Soon, every male that wasn't Hinata's relative (and Kaka-sensei) was singing along, variations of drunken songs spreading around like wildfire. Sakura couldn't help but laugh at the sight of Lee and Guy-sensei, whom had gotten up onto one of the many new benches at Ichiraku's (it had had renovations, so now not only is it bigger, but it also has a bar and a dance floor, jukebox included) and started singing 'I'm too sexy', whilst pretending to strip from their overly tight, green spandex uniforms._

_ Scratch that, they __**were**__ stripping them off, though albeit in a very drunk-assed sort of way, making it __**that**__ much more entertaining, if not slightly disturbing. When they managed to get their outfits down to their hips, though, they had to cut it short, seeing as Guy had passed out, Lee was arguing with a cactus (which then evolved into a full blown drunken taijutsu death match), and an anonymous informant (formerly known as Neji Hyuuga) informed everybody that those tights were the __**only**__ thing protecting us from seeing their very naked bodies'. And with that, the evening dispersed, and Sakura left first, wanting to make it home before eleven._

_ So here she is now, completely sober (she doesn't drink alcohol), walking through a dark alleyway __**alone**__ at 10:47 at night. What a __**smart**__ thing for a single, beautiful woman to do. The rosette's stiletto heels clacked noisily against the bitumen beneath her feet, her breaths coming out in puffs of white, resembling fluffy clouds, minus the lack thereof of sunlight, and the frosty bite in the autumn air; winter was soon to be upon the village, and Sakura could hardly contain her excitement. Winter implied Christmas, and Christmas implied snow; Sakura absolutely adored the Christmas season, especially the crisp, wintry air, and the snowflakes that travelled along with it. _

_Snow was just… magical. _

_A sudden burst of chilly wind sliced into Sakura's bare flesh, whipping her bubblegum pink locks and her party dress in every direction, Sakura stopping to regain her balance. Smoothing down her wine coloured v-neck dress (the v comes down to her cleavage line, showing off her full, creamy breasts, the dress straps coming up and around her neck, tied into place at the base; the length of the dress is just above her knees), and making sure her matching heels were correctly strapped, Sakura then proceeded in continuing her journey through the dark, damp, ruin known as an alley, shifting her gaze occasionally to make sure no one was watching and or following her._

_ The echoes of lovers' getting intimate echoed endlessly from every house nearby, signalling Sakura's arrival upon the brothels; the whorehouses' where cheap sluts took any degenerate they could lay their hands on and fucked them senseless. The red light district. Disgusting would be the ultimate understatement of the century. No, that word didn't do it justice… Stepping out of the darkness, Sakura turned to be treading upon the unwelcome sight of the __**complete**__ red light district, filled with whores of all description sashaying up, down and across every street, approaching anything that had a noticeable bulge in their pants'. _

_Drug deals were taking place both on the streets, __**in plain sight**__, and in the privacy of the surrounding buildings, which were all decorated with fluorescent lights of every colour, shape and size. 'Festy…' Sakura thought with a sickened shudder, many men leering at her suggestively, her instinct telling her to tear them to shreds. Just because she was wearing a slightly revealing, tight dress, it did not mean that she was a piece of skimpy trash that screwed anything and everything of the male description. _

_No, she was reserved, powerful and sophisticated, and to top that, she was a straight out virgin; never dated a man, let alone let them make physical contact with her, no matter how innocent the gesture was (hugging Naruto and a few select close male friends being the only exception). Glaring violently at her peeping toms, Sakura continued to walk stiffly up the street, clutching her handbag to her side in a death grip, making sure not to get too close to any males' that were on the prowl. _

_Her pace quickened when she noticed a cloaked figure (a man from the look of their profile) stalking after her, their strides strong, heavy, like they carried a purpose. With whatever self-control Sakura could muster, she let loose, bolting toward the closest building, which seemed to be a place where only the most sinister of exchanges took place. Without so much as a second glance behind her, or at the building she was rushing into, Sakura threw open the sliding doors, slamming them shut behind her, before taking off into a distant corner where there were several booths secluded from each other, planting herself in an uncomfortable, latex cushioned love-seat._

_ Panting and trying to catch her breath, Sakura relaxed into the chair, though it was uncomfortable, leaning her head against the thin wall above her head; their were hushed whispers, cold, curt and demanding being uttered on the other side, and as Sakura turned her head to press her ear to the wall, she noticed the sliding doors across from her, a strange seal pressed to the outer surface. _

'_Ah, must be a chakra lock in the form of a paper seal; convenient and dangerously difficult to diffuse, especially if you don't know the intricate inner workings of perfect chakra control and precise accuracy in the amount of chakra pushed to flow through it.' Sakura thought absently, fiddling with a stray bit of her bang that had inadvertently escaped its' confines amongst the rest of them, smoothing it back into place. Just as Sakura had calmed down, and stood to leave, she heard a disturbingly familiar voice that brought a shiver of pure terror down her spine, from the other side of that thin sliding door._

_ "No, I do not have the time to negotiate; my conditions remain the same, unhindered. If you cannot rise to meet my expectations, then this has all been for nothing. I have risked too much already just by being here; if I get caught, everything will end here. All bargaining ceases to be, and I will no longer transport your 'goods' to where they need to be. Do you understand the severity of this situation? Not only for my welfare, but yours as well? You will inevitably go out of business without my aid, and you know it, Sano. Well? Have we breached an… understanding?"_

_ Sakura had leaned in further, not quite believing that it was __**him**__ behind those walls, and that only this thin barricade stood in the way of their reunion. "Of course, Uchiha-sama. My mistake. We shall proceed according to your requests. Oh, and I have a message from Taena; 'Feel free to drop by any time, __**Sasuke-kun**__. Arigato gozaimasu, onegaishimasu.'" _

_Sakura's hands fell to her sides. 'It… can't… be…' Sakura shook her head in disbelief, refusing to acknowledge it. 'It can't be you… can it… __**Sasuke-kun**__?' And who was this 'Taena' person? Whoever she was, it seemed that she was quite comfy with calling Sasuke by his fangirl name; the only reason Sakura called him by that name any more was because it had an intimacy that reminded her of Team Kakashi, the days where her crush slowly bloomed into a love stronger than life itself. _

_It reminded her of the days where Sasuke was still… Sasuke-kun. Edging closer to the sliding doors, Sakura placed a hand gently on the paper seal, tracing its' pattern, before inputting the appropriate amount of chakra to enable the door's opening; she was still unsure as to whether or not she should barge in and drag Sasuke back into the village by force, or if she should calmly deliberate what she was doing further; it was obviously the former. _

_Carefully, so as to not attract attention, Sakura peeled away the paper seal, praying to all forms of Kami-sama that this would work, and that the people on the opposite side of the door would not be alerted to the intrusion. Making a number of forbidden hand-seals, Sakura then transformed into a transparent line of the thin, cool breeze from outside (the sliding door at the entrance had just been thrown open, and Sakura timed it so that the draft would carry her through the crack of the door, so that she was in the room), and slithered her way through the thin gap the door produced thanks to the lack of proper ingenuity in the craftsmanship and construction of the building. _

_The draft collided with the back of a man bathed in candlelight, causing him to shiver and call out harsh profanities as to the reason why there was a breeze rolling in the closed off sanction; it narrowly avoided the figure shrouded in shadows, or it just didn't affect him like it did everyone else (there were a total of seven people gathered in the room; the man shrouded in darkness, the man bathed in light, two well-built shinobi from the Land of Snow, a rather tall, intimidating man with spiky orange hair and a calm air to him, a man with slick white hair that just came short of his shoulders, lavender eyes, a cocky personality from the looks of things, and a large, rather familiar sword that Sakura could not place… and finally a woman, no older than her, with unkempt, fiery red hair, thick, black rimmed glasses, and a snarky vibe. _

_She was dressed like a hooker, so Sakura assumed that she was there to 'entertain' one of the many men in the room… maybe even __**all**__ of them… not that she was attractive anyways), whom were shaking ever so slightly from the cold. It looked like they definitely weren't used to the cold. Well, the ninja from the Land of Snow seemed to handle it quite well; after all, their country was by far much colder, and they had to __**train**__ in those conditions twenty-four seven. Sakura settled against the far wall, away from every person in the room, and continued to listen to the bargaining that was taking place; apparently it was very serious and even more illegal. _

"_So in exchange for that collection of forbidden scrolls, you are willing to transport my narcotics and b-girls?" The man, Sano, inquired cautiously, testing the waters as it were; dealing with an S-classed rogue ninja wanted in the Bingo Book for death-sentence ranked crimes was a dangerous thing to do. Very much indeed. With a curt nod barely distinguishable due to the shadows obscuring __**his**__ face from view, Sano continued, oblivious to the extra pair of ears listening in._

_ "Well, __**that**__ matter is resolved; on to the additional problem. Konoha has started snooping around our other branches in three of the five Hidden Nations; Wind, Mist and Lightning. They have grown suspicious, and are planting spies in amongst our ranks, to report back to the Rokudaime on their findings. Many of my exchanges with some of the highest ranking officials in all the Hidden Villages have been reported, and prevented; now, we seem to have run into a technical glitch of sorts. I have arranged a deal with the Feudal Lord of the Land of Clouds, but my fear is that some of those fucking hopeless ANBU hide amongst us. We have been extremely fortunate of late that no one has yet seen through the genjutsu cast upon this area." _

'_So that's it; when it comes to genjutsu, Naruto is beyond incapable, below Academy student level…' Sakura thought, sweatdropping at the memory of him getting caught off guard by __**Konohamaru**__ of all people, and ending up trapped in a D-ranked level of genjutsu. He's the fucking HOKAGE for Kami-sama's sake! Shaking off her thoughts, Sakura continued to eavesdrop, her heart rate accelerating the more she looked at the person who was possibly Sasuke. _

"_What I need you to do is snuff out those Rokudaime dogs," Sakura's eyebrow twitched at the mention of her friends, both Naruto and the one's in ANBU Black Ops, as Sano continued, "and make sure that they never interfere with our business again. Put them out of their misery if you have to; just make sure that they do not meddle with our affairs any longer. Is this a reasonable request to ask of you, Uchiha-sama? Or will it be too much to handle?" There was a stiff silence, the flickering candlelight casting orange shadows on the walls, the creak of the wooden floorboards and the shifting of obvious discomfort stifling the tension-thick air. Finally, __**he**__ spoke. _

"_What's in it for me? What can be assured and guaranteed on my behalf if I carry this request out, Sano? What is there that you could possibly offer me that would pique my interest?" An evil, gloating smile plastered itself on Sano's features, and he lifted both his arms so that the hems of his silk gold and black kimono's sleeves touched the corners of the kotatsu they were sitting at, and he said sinisterly, "I can provide you with the one thing you have yet to achieve. Your other goal __**is**__ to revive the Uchiha Clan, correct?" Sasuke, or whom Sakura assumed was him, leaned forward ever-so-slightly, indicating that indeed his interest had been captured by Sano's proposal; his brief nod only signified it, and the gesture pushed Sano over the edge; he began to continually speak his mind on the topic, Sasuke hanging on his every word. _

"_Hai. Well, there are many compatible women in the Village Hidden in the Leaves which can certainly by all means produce you with a male heir, and their genes will not interfere with your Clan's superior kekkei genkai. I am sure you are looking to produce a son that is born with the bloodline trait, correct? You wish for the child to have your __**doujutsu**__ (a/n: *__**ocular jutsu**__, for those who do not know; such as the __sharingan__, __byakugan__ and __rinnegan__; the three most revered and feared ocular jutsus in the shinobi world) so that he may carry on the legacy of the Uchiha, or am I mistaken, Uchiha-sama? Your aniki never managed to conceive, did he? After all, he joined up with Akatsuki before he ever—" _

"_Do not speak of __**him**__ in my presence!" Sasuke growled viciously, sending Sano back into the thin wall, fear radiating off of him as he cowered feebly on the plush, fluffy cushion that he sat on. Enraging the Uchiha was definitely __**not**__ on Sano's list of things to do, and so he had to soothe him with his reassurance. _

"_Sumimasen deshita, Uchiha-sama. I did not mean to insult your heritage by bringing up the mention of __**that**__**man**__. A thousand pardons." With a bow to the floor, and a hushed demand to get off his ass and sit back down from Sasuke, they continued their previous discussion without qualm. "What if I said I were interested in your proposal? How would you manage to convince any woman in __**this**__ village to agree to it?" _

_Sasuke gestured toward himself, obviously doubting that any woman that knew he were a rogue, wanted ninja would still want to help him rebuild his clan through consensual intercourse. A flash of pink and glowing green bounced before his eyes, and just as quickly it returned to the dull surroundings of the cramped space that they were currently residing in; but Sasuke already had his answer, letting a knowing smirk grace his lips as he schemed a plot that would make use of Sano and his unwavering trust. _

"_If you are indeed interested, then there is __**no**__ possible way that __**any**__ woman would refuse this offer, especially the one's that knew you when you were younger; when you were still a faithful member of the village. I am sure you were quite popular then, ne?" Sasuke scowled in reply, taking Sakura back to the days where he used to glare holes through all of the gathered fangirls, her included. It took her breath away, and Sakura suddenly let out a soundless puff of air, not realising she had indeed been holding her breath. _

_Clamping a hand over her mouth, she watched to see everyone's reaction; it seemingly went unnoticed, but Sakura wouldn't doubt that Sasuke was already well aware of her presence; he had stiffened somewhat, cocking his ear toward where the sound had originated. Sakura had to get out, and __**fast**__. Inching her way toward the door's thin crack, Sakura then proceeded in slipping through, and headed toward the exit as fast as she could without alerting anyone's unwanted attention. Just as she made it out, Sasuke spoke, loud and clear, projecting his voice so that Sakura herself could get an advanced warning to escape (not intentionally; Sasuke was confident that she wouldn't escape), _

"_It appears a lost little lamb has caught on about our activities, and has just escaped with this valuable information." And with that one sentence, all hell broke loose._

"_What?! When did you—?! Argh, never mind that now! Setsuna, Meiji, capture the spy!"_

"_HAI!" Both male bodyguards obeyed their master's order, and set off after Sakura, whom had already made it to the end of the district, turning blindly around a corner which turned out to be a dead end, but one easily overcome with her ninja capabilities. She had to get to Naruto, where she knew she would be safe; they wouldn't risk exposure over capturing a single spy. Then again, she __**did**__ know all of their secrets, and once told, everything would fall apart for them; so yes, they __**would**__ risk just about __**anything**__ to capture her. 'Fuck me!' Sakura hissed internally as she propelled herself up onto the closest rooftop, not even bothering to cloak her chakra signal, as she sprinted full out to the Hokage Mansion. _

_Sakura would __**not**__ let them get the better of her, otherwise it meant that everything up until now would be a waste; all the changes she endured over the years would mean next to nothing if she could not evade a few petty cronies of a sick recidivist who sold women to be sex slaves and Kami-sama knows what else. She would push herself over the edge if necessary, as long as she reported back to Naruto. With the mansion in plain sight, only about a hundred metres away, Sakura went into full throttle, bounding heavily over the roofs of strangers houses as she heard the fast approaching sound of the enemy shinobi gaining on her; but they were already too late. _

_Sakura had made it within an earshot, and was currently throwing her weight forward, up several floors of stairs, turning left into the mansion itself, flying down the hallway until she came to the familiar door of Naruto's bedroom, throwing it open to where he and Hinata both lay, both in a deep sleep, curled up in each other's arms. The sound of Naruto's door almost being ripped from it's hinges awoke the pair, starling them and bringing a strangled scream from Hinata; Naruto acted on impulse, sheathing a kunai and using his body to shield Hinata from any harm._

_ When he saw Sakura standing there, looking frantic and downright alarmed, he dropped the contraption and was at her side in an instant, pulling her into a tight embrace as Hinata stood and made her way over, worry and concern for her friend driving her forward. _

"_Sakura-chan! What is it?! What's wrong? You're so pale! Ah, hey, you're shaking—"_

"_N-Naruto! __**H-He's**__ here! S-Sasuke-kun is h-here in the v-village!" Sakura sobbed, tears spilling from the rims of her eyes as she attempted to control her breathing, which was erratic from both the strenuous and narrow escape and from the memory of Sasuke sitting calmly in his seat, as if he had no worry in the world; as if he had never left in the first place. Naruto had stiffened at the mention of his best friend the man he thought of as his brother, and knowing that he was in the village, right now, as they spoke? It __**burned**__, but if there was any way __**at all **__to bring him back, whilst he was __**actually**__ here, then he would do everything in his power. _

"_Sakura-chan, where did you see him? Where was he when you saw him?"_

_The rosette choked off her final sobs, wiping away her tears before she recounted every detail, about the hidden red light district, about the deals that were being made, and about the 'encounter' with their former teammate, Naruto listening to every detail, every little piece of information that could help him figure out how to disclose the situation and drag Sasuke home for good. They sat on the newlywed's large bed, Naruto sitting on the edge with a comforting arm around Sakura's shoulders, Hinata sitting with her legs crossed underneath her and a gentle hand on Sakura's left shoulder, her head rested firmly in the crook of the rosette's neck. Sakura had gotten as far as the details that involved Sasuke being involved in illegal activities, before she burst into tears, knowing that this would only add more credibility, more reason, to have him executed without fair trial. _

_Even Naruto didn't have enough pull to prevent whatever sentence Sasuke was and or would be given; that only said how __**bad**__ Sasuke's crimes really were. Once everything had settled, Naruto left to prepare for the restraint and capture of both the felons behind the drug and prostitution rings and Sasuke himself, leaving Hinata to tend to Sakura. Before he left though, Naruto exclaimed sternly, "Now don't you even __**think**__ about leaving this room and building; knowing Sasuke-teme, he wouldn't give leeway to anybody, even a former teammate. If he truly is deeply involved with this drug-whore bust, then he wouldn't want anybody standing in his and his associate's way, whether it is to save his own ass or otherwise. Okay Sakura-chan? Don't worry about anything; I'll handle it."_

_ And with one last thumbs up, and that promise-of-a-lifetime smile of his, Naruto barged out of the room, to where the ANBU awaited him in his office. Sakura was always surprised about the likeness he shared with his father, Yondaime Namikaze (Minato Namikaze), the 4__th__ Hokage; the only difference now in their looks were the whiskers that adorned Naruto's cheeks, and the maturity in their eyes. Minato had had serious, fiery azure orbs, that had a certain way of lighting up that made you want to grin like an idiot, and throw yourself in his arms for a friendly hug. Whereas with Naruto, his cerulean orbs were childish, immature, but when he was in a moment of seriousness, they held a different light; when he looked you in the eye, and promised you that he would do everything in his power to carry out your request, you actually believed him. That was one of the undeniable truths that made Naruto… Naruto. _

_For several hours, Hinata stayed up and gossiped with Sakura about random things, keeping her occupied for most of the time; but it couldn't last forever. The minute Hinata drifted off into a peaceful slumber, Sakura snuck out of the room, narrowly evading the ANBU that had been placed to guard the bedroom. 'Urgh… Naruto really does think ahead…He can be quite paranoid when he wants to be… for good reason I suppose…' With a small smile, Sakura headed off into the night, back to her awaiting apartment; no __**way**__ could she remain complacent like a sitting duck on the fryer when she could be relaxing in her own room. _

_Carefully avoiding the red light district, Sakura took the long way until she was three and a half blocks away from her apartment, before abruptly pulling to a halt, the faint scent of something sinisterly familiar carried on the wind; but before the rosette could act in any way, she was grabbed from behind, a hand clamped tightly around her waist and over her plush lips, dragging her into the darkness, the shadows swallowing her from head to toe._

* * *

"—_mfph! Ent mehm guugh! Aah! Let me go, you fucking sick prick!" Sakura hollered angrily as she was hauled stiffly through the twin doors of the earlier building by none other than the shinobi known as Meiji, whom looked none too pleased to be struggling with a petite woman half his size, in terms of both height and muscular proportions. The rosette squirmed and writhed in utter futility, knowing that if she were to even __**attempt**__ to use her monstrous strength to break free, that she would ultimately be killed in the process; alerting Naruto to her current predicament would only lead to unnecessary bloodshed and conflict, inevitably all from Naruto unto Sakura. _

_He had specifically told her __**not**__**to**__**leave**__**the**__**building**__; even went as far as to post ANBU, freakin' __**ANBU**__, outside his bedroom door (although she managed to escape when they did their routine sweep of the hallway). Now more than ever did she wish that she had listened to his advice (more like warning/death threat…), instead of ignoring it and disobeying him anyways, regardless of his former request. _

"_Well, well, well. What do we have here? A kunoichi from the looks of things; and dare I say a very __**striking**__ one."_

"_No you dare __**not**__ say it!" Sakura hissed as she lashed out with her feet, the stiletto's that had adorned them earlier in the evening still intact as she slashed his cheek, blood dripping down till it met his gaunt white chin. "It seems that that pun was indeed quite accurate; not only are you very beautiful, but you are also quite feisty." Sano stated calmly, wiping the blood from his cheek whilst his bodyguards made quite the scene._

"_Ah! Sano-sama! You little __**bitch**__!" Meiji, the man restraining her, growled, his grip on her tightening with one arm whilst he raised the other to hit her; a flash a second later ensured an agonised scream from the man in question's lips. _

"_**That**__. __**Is**__. __**Far**__. __**Enough**__." Sasuke stated bitterly, gripping the man's wrist with enough strength to have easily broken it with just his pinky finger alone; with a shaky, reluctant nod, Meiji released Sakura, only to find herself in the arms of her former (and possibly still) love. _

"_Uchiha-sama, what is the meaning of this?!" Sano exclaimed furiously, not quite sure what was going on; from being strangely calm one second, to angry next was quite the achievement for Sasuke, as his trademark smirk graced his lips. _

"_Hn. Whatever you assume is up to you; but for one thing, this __**woman**__," the word sent instant shivers of an unknown source up Sakura's spine, "witnessed enough to have me executed on the spot for more than just treason. Therefore, I shall take it as my responsibility to punish her as I see fit. I trust this arrangement is fair on all accounts, Sano? That way, you don't have to dirty your hands and reputation; and I __**may**__ just consider that __**offer**__ you made me earlier." Sano's tawny steel-blue eyes instantly lit up, and with an avid nod, he sealed their deal. _

"_Hai, hai, that will be fine, Uchiha-sama. Do whatever you have to to keep her quiet. I'll be waiting at our usual meeting place. Meiji, Setsuna, let us leave!"_

"_HAI!" Setsuna and Meiji chorused in stoic unison, before they took off in a cloud of mist; a bit odd since they come from the Land of Snow, but you know, whatever works for you. Silence…_

"_Ne, Sasuke-kun?" Sakura turned to see the woman with fiery red hair sashay toward said man, a glimmer of something sinister in her eyes as they locked with Sakura's. Sasuke stood there with his ever apathetic expression plastered to his face, making him look a little more sombre than he actually was; Sakura assumed the reason being was because of the slut whom was now clinging to his left arm, making sure none of her body made contact with Sakura's, which suited the rosette just fine. Sakura watched with intense interest as Sasuke's scowl only grew __**worse**__, the nastiest (also most gorgeous) expression she had seen ever cross his face._

_ 'Ah, so she must be another fangirl…' Sakura thought in mild bemusement, a small smile tugging at the corners of her mouth as she observed Sasuke attempting to throw the woman off of him, unsuccessfully of course. "Get the fuck off of me!" Sasuke hissed in agitation, obviously not wanting the woman within ten feet of him; Sakura honestly didn't blame him. _

"_But Sasuke-kun! What do you plan to do about __**that**__?!" The woman screeched, throwing an accusatory finger and glare at the highly amused rosette, who was at this minute faking a demure, 'I'm totally innocent' look. Not that she was; nope, she was in some serious shit as of now. Sasuke followed her flailing appendage to where Sakura was stiffly glued to his side, looking as if she had just had a bucket of freezing cold water dumped over her head; honestly, she could be so __**clueless**__ sometimes. Oh well, Sasuke would only end up correcting that fault with what he had planned for her. _

"_**Enough**__. Karin, Juugo, Suigetsu, head off to our base; I will meet up with you soon. First I have to contend with __**this**__ matter. Now GO!" Suigetsu snickered, giving a toothy grin to Sakura (showing his high approval for her in terms of looks and attitude), before he stalked out the door, followed by Juugo, whom nodded politely in Sasuke's direction and gave a sympathetic, sad, __**shy**__ smile to Sakura, whom could only smile back at him, to reassure the kind man that she would be fine. And then there was Karin, whom looked at Sasuke with a starry-eyed admiration, and a hot glare fired in the rosette's direction; the smirk pulling at her lips set free for a single instant._

_ And with that, the door slammed, shaking the foundations of the room till there was silence. Thick tension lined the air as Sasuke withdrew his hold on the rosette, and sauntered over to the corner of the room, plopping down soundlessly, before he spoke in dull monotone, his onyx orbs hiding behind closed lids and thick, long black lashes. _

"_You've caused me a lot of trouble, Sakura. As per usual."_

_The surge that ran through the petite rosette's body at the sound of her name exiting his lips with such fluidity, grace, was powerful, almost knocking her over with the force of it. Sucking in an air of breath, Sakura slowly, moved so that she was pressed against the wall near the door, knowing full well that Sasuke had already noted this; again he spoke, but with a smirk in his voice and on his devilishly handsome face. _

"_Heh. That will do nothing, Sakura. Karin placed a chakra seal on the door after she left that only __**I**__ can break off. That, and it's on the outside of the door; knowing that you have the skill to unravel the seal itself, very impressive might I add, I had her set it on the outside. I am fully aware of your capabilities with the manipulation and distribution of correct chakra proportions, so it wasn't __**too**__ hard to figure out that you need to actually __**see**__ how much you need to output, because all of that is decided by the markings on the chakra paper itself. But you already know that, right? An intelligent woman like yourself should know your own faults, and should also know that eavesdropping is not only highly unbecoming and blatantly rude, but will inevitably get you into more trouble than you bargained for; more trouble than it's worth."_

_ Sakura didn't even see him coming. One second he was sitting, completely relaxed, the next… the next he was atop her, Sakura herself thrown onto an overly large bed that she had failed to notice._

"_Wha—"_

"_I never realised how grown up you are now, __**Sa-ku-ra**__. I almost didn't recognise you when they dragged you back in here; you've filled out in all the right places." To prove his point, Sasuke's hands moved, groping and squeezing her hips, her thighs, her breasts in such a manner to leave Sakura beet red and unresponsive; she was being fondled by the man of her dreams yet she didn't feel anything. Just pure terror at the thought of where this encounter was leading. With a cold smirk, Sasuke went for her dress, tearing it from her body and leaving it slumped in the corner of the room, barely in one piece, her heels long since discarded, leaving her in just her lacy white with pink trim panties; her dress had an in-built bra, so Sakura didn't really need to wear one. _

_Oh how she wished she was right now… Watching Sasuke's eyes travel up and down every inch of her body made Sakura immediately self-conscious, not wanting to have him look at her he was now; like he was the predator, about to capture its' prey. Bringing her arms up to cover her chest, the rosette observed Sasuke's lusty stare glaze over into an even, hate-filled glare, like Sakura had insulted his ego; he was doing this as some sort of 'sick favour' to her, and Sakura knew deep down in her every fibre that this was wrong, that she didn't want this. But she didn't have a say in the matter._

_ Sasuke tore off his shirt impatiently, knowing that he had very little time to do this before his teammates (Karin in general; she was completely dense as to what Sasuke had planned for Sakura's punishment) grew suspicious, at the same time untying the knot of the thick, purple rope that he had tied around his waist to hold up the material of his loincloth, letting the material fall to the ground, leaving him in just his black pants, which he found were tight and constricting; odd, seeing as he had fooled around with one of the walking sex-providers only moments before Sakura had appeared in the room with Meiji restraining her (he had been in a room with the woman of course). _

_Sasuke leant over her, letting Sakura see him for the first time in her life, the firm muscles on his stomach rippling with every breath he took, with every miniscule movement. The chorded muscles of his back strained as he held himself up, his obsidian orbs boring into her emerald ones as he devoured her appearance, relishing the fact that it seemed no one had ever seen or touched her before. He would be the first, forced or otherwise. Sakura could not contain her shock; Sasuke intended to—?! Seriously?! Here?! NOW?! _

'_Kami-sama, help me!' Sakura wailed in her head as she began to shove and push the man on top of her away from her shaking frame, ignoring the part of her that protested, and felt rather turned on by his show; the liquids between her thighs were starting to soak the sheets of the linen beneath her, slowly dripping down her legs, closer and closer to his wandering fingers. Sasuke only had to restrain her with one hand whilst he fondled with the other; starting at her breasts, he pinched and rubbed one of their pert nipples, earning a surprised yelp from the startled, flustered rosette, whom was writhing dangerously, trying with every ounce of strength she had to throw him off, especially before his hand made it __**there**__. _

_With an annoyed 'Tsk', Sasuke applied more force to the hand that gripped her shoulder, squeezing painfully until she stilled, a choked cry of pain leaving her lips, before he continued to memorise every inch of the woman he used to detest with every fibre of his being. Without any warning, he attacked her left breast with fervour, taking it within the confines of his hot, wet mouth, tongue massaging her stiff nipple roughly, nipping at it with his teeth none-too-gently, a whimper of pain and admittedly (boy does she hate herself for admitting it) pleasure at the sensations it invoked. _

_Sakura's eyes widened when she realised his spare hand was trailing down to her drenched sex, the tingling turning into a horrible guilty burning, the want for something not too far out of her reach driving her to stay still; but the rational part of her mind, the part that ignored the physical pleasures altogether and focused on keeping her virginity, spoke on her behalf, and with whatever strength Sakura had left, she put it into throwing her weight at Sasuke, hopefully knocking him off of her. Unfortunately that didn't work either; he was completely solid, immovable above her, and the force she had applied seemed to have only pissed him off __**that**__ much more; with a quick flick of his wrist, he sent Sakura's cheek flying in the opposite direction, her head now looking toward the window across from her, the faint traces of snow falling from the sky, the clouds blocking out the moonlight so that everything was smothered in darkness. _

_The rosette's cheek throbbed from the impact of his backhand, causing tears to flow free; what startled her out of her trance was Sasuke's finger rubbing her small protuberance through the completely soaked panties she now wore, a tight fiery knot forming in her lower abdomen. Sakura stiffened till she was completely rigid, unmoving, whilst his fingers danced around the base of her wet folds, underwear still intact, fluids_

_ever-gushing from her heavily by his unwanted touch. "Hm, so I'm assuming __**this**__ is why you didn't want my hands down __**there**__? Hmph, well this is a __**nice**__ surprise; I didn't think __**any**__ woman could ejaculate __**this**__ much, but then again, you were always full of surprises Sakura. Get any wetter, and you'll probably be too slick to hold me in place. That wouldn't be a good outcome, now would it?" _

_Sakura's eyes bulged in fright as he yanked off his pants, a pair of black (a/n: a very popular colour for Sasuke… XP), silk boxers the only barrier between the two of them, seeing as her underwear had been pulled to the side (though she was still wearing them) so that he had a better field of entry. The burning between Sakura's legs had turned into a full blown throbbing, an eager want for a means to the end of the torture ever-present, but Sakura's repulsion to the activity made it clear that she did not want what was to come. _

_But it was already too late. _

_Sasuke had spread her legs, even whilst she screamed and squirmed like a fish out of water, and thrust forward, penetrating her maidenhead and sending an agonising, shooting pain through her lower region, ripping apart anything and everything that was pure in her. _

* * *

_End of Flashback_

_**(Play Naruto Shippuden OST 'Utsusemi' when you read this section! Or 'Whataya want from me' by 'Adam Lambert!' Preferably 'Utsusemi.')**_

Sakura sobbed pitifully as Sasuke continued to thrust deeper and harder into her, the pain long gone, but a faint stinging remained, reminding her of the searing pain that had engulfed her like a raging wildfire only moments ago, but what had seemed and felt like an eternity of never-ending suffering from her purview. No physical pain could ever compare to that of the one she had felt losing her virginity; it was like her limbs had been torn off from the sockets, and her soul had been sucked out of her temporarily, leaving her completely exposed for the scavengers to feast upon.

The laboured pants and grunts emitted from Sasuke was all that was heard, except for the occasional whimpers and pleas for him to stop from Sakura, to just let her curl up in a corner of the world and die. He had chosen right; this _was_ the most torturous form of punishment there could be, and Sakura would give anything to have it end, for the pain, both emotional and physical, to cease and disappear. Sakura felt nothing.

She was simply… numb. Even as the muscles in her stomach clenched dangerously, signalling something big was about to happen, she felt nothing. Emptiness. Hollow. A shell of a former pink haired kunoichi.

"Kuso! You're so _tight_, Sakura!" Sasuke choked out through clenched teeth, biting his bottom lip as her walls clamped tautly around his member, quivering with a knowing Sakura could not explain; all she knew was this _had_ to happen, _had_ _to_, in order for the source of the pain to disappear, to leave her be. Sasuke struggled to keep his orgasm in check, seeing as it looked like Sakura was going to climax any minute now, even though she wasn't sure what was happening to her; he had meant what he said. She really _was_ tight, and it was hard enough for him to force his way in (even with her fluids); but now that she was reaching her limit? Fuck, this was _not_ going to end well for him if she didn't cum soon. But, thank

Kami-sama, she did, out of the blue, just as he managed to slam one last hard thrust against her clitoris. The knot in Sakura's chest unfurled, and exploded, bringing both tears and a flash of white to her eyes; the pure white of snow, the one source that had ever held any deeper meanings for Sakura, the emblem that symbolised her purity, had been ripped away, just as mother earth had been raped of its' natural elements. Just as she had been.

The waves of pleasure were finally acknowledged by Sakura, albeit with extreme reluctance, and slammed into her like a brick wall; though this was something that she could not simply smash with her fist and knock down. No, this was something that had to run its' course, and the longer it went on, the more Sakura wanted it, the dirtier she became. Clamping a shaky hand over her mouth, Sakura let out a muffled cry, before whimpering; Sasuke had managed to get in a good seven thrusts before he was thrown over the edge, his orgasm shaking him to the core, the same white Sakura had experienced a good ten seconds ago flashing behind closed lids as he spilled his juices all over her swollen sex, mixing with hers until the two had become one.

As the light receded, so did Sasuke's drive; though he had to admit, Sakura was probably the best lay he had ever had, especially since she **was** a virgin (and was extremely unresponsive the whole time). But the time for reminiscing was not now; he had to report back to his group before they came back looking for him themselves. Sasuke dressed quickly, and edged toward Sakura carefully, leaning down so that his mouth was just an inch or so away from her ear, his hot breath tickling her cheek and fanning the nape of her neck, and spoke, menace dripping from his threat.

"That was just the beginning. If Naruto or anyone attempts to interfere with our little 'operation', then you'll be seeing _a lot_ more of me, Sakura. Understand?" Smirking to himself when Sakura nodded feebly, Sasuke pressed a possessive kiss to her forehead, and turned, sauntering towards the door, before stopping hesitantly at the door. Turning so that half of his profile was facing Sakura, Sasuke said simply,

"You shouldn't be so self-conscious about your forehead; you've grown into it over the time I haven't seen you." And with that he left, a small smile on his lips; now she _truly_ belonged to him, and him _alone_.

* * *

Sakura stumbled blindly down the street, towards no where in particular, eyes hazy and glazed over, a sombre viridian setting in to replace the usually vivid, bright emerald orbs. Her clothing was sorted as best she could, but thanks to the horrid rip that tore its' way up one of her thighs, and the bruises that had been inflicted on every inch of her body, you could easily tell that she had been roughed up; not that she cared about her appearance _now_, after all of _that_.

The rosette hadn't bothered to strap on her heels; she just walked bare foot on the bitumen beneath her feet, seeing as she was in too much pain to walk with them on. Sakura, being a medic-nin, was aware that the vaginal walls had to be rested for at least four to five days (a week) after engaging in intercourse, but due to the fact that she had been raped… well, she needed to be checked out at the hospital for any more serious damage to her vagina.

And to make sure she didn't conceive; after all, _he_ hadn't worn any form of contraception when he thoroughly raped away her virginity. As the tainted rosette stumbled around a corner, she was greeted by an enraged, gravelly bellow, which sounded out like an amphitheatre thanks to the quiet of the night.

"What did I _tell_ you to do, Sakura-chan?!" Naruto all but screamed at her from the distance, not yet aware of her state of distress and lack of clothing. "I _told_ you, _requested_, that you _stay_ _in_ _my_ _room_ until the matter was resolved! And what did you do?! You not only disobeyed my request, but you wandered off _alone_ at this time of the night! And then Hinata-chan went and had a _miscarriage_ while you were doing _fuck_ knows what! Do you understand what that _means_, Sakura?! I lost my _baby_ because _you_ went gallivanting around the village! You could have _saved_ it, if you had _been_ there! What the _fuck_ is wrong with—"

"Na…a…ru...u…to…" Sakura choked out just as he closed the distance, just as she settled herself under the lamplight of one of the streetlamps, the faint light enough to illuminate her broken, shattered profile. Tears spilt from her eyes as she watched Naruto's face morph from furiously enraged to shocked and appalled; when Naruto took in her shaking figure, that was the final straw, what completely broke him.

"A-ah! Sakura-chan! W-what happened?! Oh Kami, you're _bleeding_!" With one last, sad, broken smile, Sakura collapsed into a heap on the ground, Naruto dashing forward screaming "SAKURA-CHAN! WAKE UP! SAKURA-CHAN!"

* * *

_The next morning_

_**(Play 'Mirage' by Loveholic!) **_

Sakura awoke in a room of white to find Naruto curled up in a ball alongside her, one of his arms wrapped gingerly beneath her back, the other thrown over her stomach, clutching her side protectively, lovingly. Sakura gently raised an arm and began stroking Naruto's hair, sending a jolt through him and he stirred almost instantaneously to meet the gaze of familiar emerald orbs; though this time, they no longer carried that shine, that light that they always had in them.

No… these were the eyes of a broken woman, the same eyes Sakura had had when Sasuke had left the village all those years ago; the eyes that Naruto had never wanted to see again as long as he lived. They constantly haunted him in his dreams, and that was bad enough, but to see them once again, in plain sight, made Naruto feel sick; he despised himself, for not being able to perform his duties as both Hokage and as her best friend.

He could not protect her under either of his self-proclaimed roles, titles, and now look at what had become of her? She was no longer the woman he had once been madly in love with, the woman that had had never-ending reserves of energy, of happiness, of smiles that always never failed to reach her eyes. No… she was a broken tool, whom no longer held any commensurate value to anyone else, was no longer what she had strived so hard to become, and maintain over the years; she was simply... damaged, ruined, _shattered_.

The dejected look in her eyes only proved that, that she was crushed beyond all feasible doubt, her life resembling that of a timer, the sand pouring down to the last moments of her now meaningless existence.

"Sakura-chan—"

"Naruto... arigatou.... for finding me... saving me... I...I wouldn't be here without you—" The rosette's voice broke, tears springing to her eyes as the memories of the previous night came flooding back to her, swamping her with an insatiable need to scrub herself until the skin was raw and broken, to the point of shedding blood; it was the only other way she could vent the emotional trauma she felt on the inside.

"Sakura-chan!" Naruto panicked, pushing himself up so that he rested against the

bed-frame, before pulling her into his arms, holding her tightly as he rocked to and fro, calming Sakura down immediately; some of the light she thought would never come back did, all for this one special man, her best friend, the man that she could have been with if she hadn't felt for _him_. As she lay there in Naruto's arms, the first specks of snow began to fall, dancing in front of her eyes tauntingly, only serving to remind her further of what had happened to her.

She turned and buried her face in Naruto's chest; breathing in his scent as she let the onslaught of tears fall, sobs racking her body as he held her closer to him.

From that day on, Sakura hated the snow more than anything; not only was it a reminder, but whenever Sakura laid eyes upon the cold white substance, it always somehow came out stained in red.

* * *

**a/n: End of chapter one! So how was that? Did anyone notice that **_**'Ent mehm guugh'**_** translated into English was **_**'let me go'**_**?? And I do apologise again for how short the last one (prologue) was; as I have said numerous times in some private messages and whatnot, I was trying to capture the essence of suspense, angst and mystery, and that's all that was necessary to write. Still, for any inconvenience, sumimasen deshita! **

**I hope you stick around for this story!**

**Arigato gozaimasu! XD**

**~Sasukeluva 4eva~ **

**NOTE: Can I ask of you, as the readers, to attempt to read my crappy poem 'Never There?' It's just that I have had no notification that it is, if at all, being read, and if it isn't, then I'll have to remove it; what's the point of posting something if you haven't the faintest clue if it's being read and appreciated? Arigatou! =)**


	3. One's pain is another's pleasure

**a/n: Well, it has been a while, hasn't it? I apologise from the bottom of my heart; I have recently just gone back to school, so I have had not had any time **_**at all**_** to work on any of my fics, and I can't help but feel terrible for it! Gomensai! –bows to floor-**

**Anyways, on with the show I suppose! =D**

**NOTE: Sakura is a little self destructive in this chapter, but that gradually fades away! =3**

**This chapter is dedicated to ****_halfkyuubikat_****, ****_Twisted Musalih_****, ****_Kygolie_****, ****_Blood Lake Beauty-Eve_****, ****_crazymel2008_****,****_I love to review_****, ****_Strayedwolf94_****, ****_Moonwaterpetal_****, ****_nicolerogersXX_****and****_Lina Mistress of Elements_**** for their AWESOME reviews!! I LOVE YOU GUYS!! T3T**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto; he is the rightful property of one Kishimoto-sensei who may find himself in more trouble than he ever bargained for after the stunt he has pulled in the latest chapters; Sasuke WILL NOT DIE!!! T-T X{**

* * *

Chapter 2

One's pain is another's pleasure

* * *

Sakura sat on Osaka Bridge, the wind soundlessly ruffling her long, bubblegum locks, her hair trailing behind her as she looked up at the endless blue sky above; wearing a pair of denim jeans torn and frayed at the hems with slashes all up the legs, and a black crop with tears over the bust adorned with tight black mesh underneath, the rosette seemed almost completely normal. Had it not been for the gauze wraps that encased her body from just below her navel, everything would have _seemed_ to be fine; but the young rosette was far from it.

Sakura's state of mind, as well as emotional stability and health, had deteriorated severely over the past six months, and only grew worse with every day; the reminders of _that day_ were becoming more frequent, triggered by touches even slightly innocent or accidental, and by scents and sounds that were even vaguely similar to _his_. All of it sent the rosette to hell and back, forcing her to endure all the pain he had previously inflicted upon her, all the while attacking strangers in a blind, psychotic stupor; so many had met their makers once colliding with the half out-of-her-mind Sakura in one of these popular, out-of-control fits she so frequented lately.

The motion was performed so regularly and repetitively that it had become a natural occurrence, one that was easily avoided, with the aid of ANBU and medic-nin possessing a sedative at hand; they always had to be prepared for the worst, particularly since the pink haired minx was so volatile and destructive when provoked. Her psychotic temperament only got worse when anyone she loved came near her; the rosette's screams and cries of anger and despair resonated through the hollow shells of her former precious people, their hearts bleeding as her self-spiteful words echoed in their ears. _"Don't come near me! I'm dirty! I'm tainted! A fucking filthy whore! Onegai! Leave me be! GO AWAY!"_

It destroyed them to see her so damaged, so broken; the transition from her cheerful bubbly persona to apathetic, distant and miserable was enough to silence all doubts about her ever fully recovering from the "incident" six months earlier. No, it only seemed as if she were indeed drowning inside herself, the darkness a welcome distraction from anything remotely horrifying that brought back all those awful memories; the feel of his hands roughly groping and grazing every inch of her burning hot skin, the sound of his laboured pants, the bed springs creaking violently, and the smug superiority in his voice when he addressed her, the way it had dripped an unrelenting malicious promise, threat, to come back and find her if she ever said a word about the events of that unforgettable day... it all made her feel violently sick, her turbulent emotions making it more difficult to keep control over.

For the several weeks after his forceful intrusion inside of her once pure, untainted folds, she had had extensive therapy and many months of painstakingly difficult rehab sessions that involved her to not only do stretches for her lower region, but to _touch_ the area of disgustful hate, to make sure she was comfortable with any future "contact" made there; she never did it, refused outright. No matter what supposed "security" she would gain from it didn't mean a thing to her; reopening old wounds was something she was going to avoid for a very long time, particularly _those_ wounds.

But over time, Sakura started to show signs of recovery; she started to go back outside, started talking again, began to hug her closer loved ones male and female alike, and she finally began to smile. As the rosette gazed longingly at the fluffy white clouds that floated lazily through the open sky, she found herself slowly drifting off, her severe deprivation of sleep becoming a serious problem; Sakura was now classified as a 'terminal insomniac', meaning that the illness was both spreading and gradually getting worse over time.

The black lines under her eyes were gaining a dark purple tinge, her emerald green orbs dull and glassy, red rimming her sore, puffy eyes; her frame had become frailer, her ribs and cheekbones prominent enough for her to be an Orochimaru lookalike. Anorexia seemed to be another cruel illness for the drastically sick rosette to be tackling as well; thankfully though, she had recently begun to put on weight, and was as slim as she had been six months earlier, her breasts filling out to be an even larger pair.

Her cycle for changing physically had rolled around again, and it couldn't have come at a worse time; many bad things came from this change, and it all went back three months prior.

* * *

_Flashback_

* * *

_Red stained everything. Her hands, her wrists, her legs, her breasts, her stomach, __**everything**__; it held the rosette captive, watching the crimson liquid flow from the freshly cut wounds, oozing out and dribbling down every inch of her gaunt white, sickly pale skin; it reminded her of what she once was, and what she had now become. She was once the pure white snow, which was now stained in red, the colour of evil, impurity, __**death**__; she was tainted, so by doing __**this**__, she ensured that those evil impurities left her body, if only temporarily._

_It usually worked after she had made a few quick cuts in places nobody would see, but after particular traits of hers had... __**changed**__, Sakura found it harder to find peace; all it was bringing was more paranoia, and with that the urge to make more lacerations. So that was what she did; raising her chosen kunai, Sakura brought the knife to her left breast, before slowly dragging it across the plump, soft flesh, the blood pouring lightly, trickling down the skin of her naked body, mingling with the other crimson droplets as they streamed down her stomach, between her un-bandaged folds, and onto the soaked tiles of her bathroom floor, the stray puddles of water turning a withering shade of red as they flushed towards the drain in the middle of the room. _

_With the cold water from her shower's funnel blasting out of the head, it made it out as if Sakura were taking a blaringly long, chilly shower, but it was just a cover up for her __**real**__ motive; though she had taken a quick cold shower beforehand, she still needed a way to block out the noise... and the smell. _

_Just as the rosette brought the sharpened blade to her collarbone, the door was thrown off its' hinges, cloaked figures recognised as ANBU standing there, Naruto and Kaka-sensei taking place up front; upon the sight, Kakashi had taken the liberty to rid her of all possible sharp implements, Naruto standing deathly still as Kakashi barked orders on his idiot student's behalf (he was the head of ANBU once again). "Get the med-nin's here NOW! Inform Tsunade-sama; she'll know the appropriate measures for __**this**__ kind of damage. DISMISSED!"_

"_HAI!" ANBU disappeared, leaving Sai, Yamato, Kakashi and the baka Hokage Naruto to deal with the shrieking wreck that was barely anything that resembled their former pink haired teammate and friend. _

"_GIVE IT BACK, GIVE IT BACK! I'M DIRTY, TAINTED! GIVE ME MY FUCKING KUNAI __**NOW**__! I JUST WANNA FUCKING __**DIE**__! JUST GIVE IT BA...AACK!" Her sobs racked her body with heavy shakes, the rosette's hands tugging at her long pink locks as she wailed, screamed and sobbed, eyes locked with the blood that was currently making its' way toward the drain just behind Naruto's feet; said man just watched the blood lifelessly, all colour leaving his face as it collided with his sandals, flowing around them in a split current before reuniting just in time to fall through the grates of the drainage mechanism. _

_Kakashi was the one to act, seeing as __**both**__ his former students' were too shaken up and damaged to do anything __**sensible**__ with themselves'. _

"_Sakura... calm down... it's alright now, everything will be fine, I promise you. No one will ever harm you again, I swear on my life; I will never leave your side if you want me there, and I will always stand by you, protecting you as I always have. You have my word, so onegai, onegai, stop doing this to yourself; I sensed a dangerous amount of distressed chakra that I immediately linked back to you, and as we drew closer, I could smell your blood, and frankly it is extremely distressing to see you so hurt. Onegai; let me help you. Let __**all**__ of us help you. Okay?" _

_Sniffling, the psychotic rosette nodded, calming down as her sensei (he would always be her sensei, no matter what) draped a warm white towel around her, scooping her frail frame up intro his strong arms before he headed off toward the hospital, Naruto finally tearing his eyes away from the room and finding the will to move, Sai and Yamato trailing behind, leaving the scene of pure white tiles, running water, and spilt blood, all of which resembled Sakura's lost purity, all the tears she has shed, and the tainted poison that now flows through her veins._

_Sakura stood in front of Tsunade, stark naked, as her shishou healed her, the familiar green glow enveloping the rosette in a warmth she hadn't felt in a very long time. As the last of her wounds were healed, Sakura bent down to pick up the discarded towel; the sight of red staining white was enough to bring a harsh, splintering scream from the rosette's lips, another psychotic rampage kicking in. It seemed that the image of scarlet corrupting white would always haunt Sakura, the very picture engraved and painted behind her horrified, tortured emerald eyes for the rest of her life._

* * *

_End of Flashback_

* * *

"Sakura-chan, Sakura-chan! Hurry up, we gotta leave! The mission starts _now_, and Kaka-sensei is sick of waiting! Come _on_, let's _go_ already!" Naruto hollered impatiently as he bounded toward the bridge's railing, where Sakura was idly sitting upon; the very same bridge that Team 7 first originated.

The sudden wave of nausea that commonly associated with their missing team member as of recently returned as the rosette remembered the scope of the mission, one that funnily enough had been assigned by Tsunade and _not_ Naruto (he had been too preoccupied to get out on the "Sasuke Retrieval Mission"); there was apparently new info on Sasuke's whereabouts, many sightings of the famed Uchiha were coming from the border of the Land of Stone, closing in on Cloud.

The "business" that Sasuke had been dealing six months earlier all centred around these two countries, and Sakura wanted nothing more than just to shrivel up and die; encountering _him_ again would only end up destroying her beyond repair. But she knew better than that; Naruto, as well as all her other loved ones, knew _nothing_ of who was responsible for her rape, nor what said person was _actually_ involved in, and if they were to ever find out... Sakura didn't want to even _go there_.

So she played along, hoping that her _'We're finally bringing Sasuke-kun back' _facade would work, be convincing. Somehow she doubted that. The rosette sauntered purposefully slow, delaying the inevitable as much as possible for as long as possible; but the flustered pinkette was deep in thought, even as Naruto snapped, all patience lost, forcefully _dragging_ her to the village gates where their teammates awaited their arrival. Sasuke was usually extremely calculating, careful; he made sure that there was _no_ possible way to be tracked. OCD leads you to be so painstakingly cautious and paranoid, Sasuke being the perfect example of that.

So then why...?

"Good of you to join us, Naruto, Sakura." Yamato stated stiffly, aware that all eyes were on him as he subtly 'scolded' the two missing members; said blonde had a fit so unbecoming of a kage, flailing around a long, accusatory appendage as he sharply pointed at Sakura, whom was still lost in her findings. "Hey! It's all on Sakura-chan! I had to go and _find her_, remember taichou? _You_ sent me, ne?"

"Naruto, it is your responsibility as both Sakura's teammate and as the Hokage of this village to take responsibility for your actions; _you left before I could tell you otherwise_. I am not the reason you are so late for this mission; that was your own fault." Yamato exclaimed calmly, a tense frame accompanied by a stern glare spelling it all out; he was not pleased for being blamed for a fault that obviously not of his own. With an awkward, shaky laugh, Naruto raised an inquisitive hand to the back of his longer, shaggier, spiky blonde hair, scratching his scalp roughly as a tint of pink coloured his cheeks, making his distinctive whiskers stand out all the more; he let his eyes trail over to said rosette, whom seemed to be seriously contemplating something.

"Uh... ne, Sakura-chan? Sore wa nan desu ka? You seem... out of it." Sakura's emerald green orbs almost instantaneously snapped up at the mention of her name, losing all facial expression that could have divulged too much information had she still been wearing it. "Huh? Uh... No, no, I... I'm fine ne, Naruto! Um... are we gonna... go now? S-Sasuke-kun can't wait for us forever!" Sakura feigned a small smile, one that _none_ of her teammates bought, but they went along with it anyways, knowing that she was still recovering and had many unresolved issues to deal with.

With curt nods, the five-man squad took off, their hasty retreat from their home causing the leaves surrounding to be lifted from the cold concrete of the ground, twirling and spinning haphazardly through the air, in a familiar tornado-like fashion; crimson red eyes watched in thorough amusement, black tomoes spinning until they too met the darkness surrounding, leaving no trace that _he_ had ever been there.

* * *

Sakura was exhausted. It was the first mission in over six months she had been deployed on, and it was finally taking its' toll on said woman's recovering body; but she was determined to prove that not only was she capable of doing missions now, but that she was strong enough to face the man that torments her in nightmares past and present. The rosette _refused_ to give in to adversity, no matter how potentially lethal it would be for her welfare, no matter how much danger she would be in when she next encountered _him_. Letting out a laboured sigh, Sakura allowed her soft green eyes to flutter closed, sleep claiming her for the first time in many months.

* * *

Glowing crimson orbs danced daintily as they came to focus on the rosette; a lusty, predatory possessiveness overtook his mask of indifference as he closed in on the sleeping pinkette, kusanagi katana raised stiffly above his head. With one last glassy, cold stare, he flicked his wrist, spinning the sharpened blade's hilt between his long fingers, gripping the sword tightly as he brought the blade down upon the pink haired kunoichi, scarlet liquid staining the white of his haori, his skin; droplets dripped down his cheek, splattering on the lush green grass as a single smirk appeared on his smug, satisfied face.

A choked gargle escaped the now very awake Sakura Haruno, blood spurting from her chest as her dull, apple-green eyes settled upon the figure that plagued her very existence; tears welled in her terrified eyes as he raised the weapon again, bringing the bloodied sword to his lips to meet an inquisitive tongue, dragging the long, wet glossa along the sharp blade, her blood staining his plush, perfect lips, the black tomoes of his sharingan boring holes into her as they morphed into a doujutsu she had never seen before, black flames bursting to life upon her as he swung his katana, the blue lightning of his chidori nagashi ripping its' way down the hilt and blade, just in time to tear through the soft, creamy, burning flesh of the shell-shocked rosette...

* * *

"AAAIIIIEEEEAAARRRRGGGHH!" Team 7 woke with a start, the strangled scream from their female companion enough to shake the exhaustion and sleep from their bodies, ice chilling their blood and sending indefinite stabs of worry and panic through them as they threw off their sleeping bags, springing off of the hard, damp, cold soil before making their way towards the shrieking rosette.

"Sakura-chan! Sakura-chan! Calm down, it's okay now, it was just a dream, ne?"

"I believe whenever someone wakes up screaming, shaking and bathed in a cold sweat, then it is referred to as a 'nightmare', konno usuratonkachi." Sai stated plainly, a faux smile gracing his thin lips as his eyes crinkled lightly, sleep still evident in his dishevelled appearance; his black cropped hair was mussed up and sticking out in all directions, his clothing wrinkled and rolled up in some places, which was odd seeing as he usually looked so clean an kempt. This case was similar for Naruto and Yamato both, but it seemed the ever elusive Kaka-sensei remained fresh-looking and alert; not surprising, seeing as he _had_ promised to watch over his female student.

"Acck, shut _up_ Sai! Now isn't the time!" Naruto snapped viciously, drawing out a reserved flinch from said teammate; he was shocked with the tone in which Naruto had used with him, even if it _was_ late at night. Sakura's eyes were wild, wet with tears that had yet to be spilt, rocking back and forth as she recalled her nightmare, the red and white flashes, the spinning black of the sharingan's tomoe and the impossibly hot onyx flames that had engulfed her, searing through her clothes and peeling off her skin from the muscle tissue itself; the pain had been so realistic, the dream... vivid, almost... _real_.

Kakashi knelt down, scooping Sakura up from her position against a large oak tree, carrying her to where he had lain moments ago, before setting her down, a startled look plastered to her stunned features ; crawling into his sleeping bag, Kakashi then proceeded in pulling the disgruntled, upset rosette in with him, zipping them up to leave them pressed together, said man's arms wrapped tightly around her.

"Right, lights out everyone!" Kakashi hollered cheerily, a warm smile glued to the set of his mouth as he closed his one visible eye; the rest complied, clambering into their sleeping bags and allowing sleep to claim them, the warmth and affection they felt all directed at the fidgeting pinkette, whom couldn't quite settle, as the remnants of her nightmare still remained, slightly fragmented, but still vividly clear; Kakashi gave her a protective, loving squeeze to reassure her, and after several moments of squirming and shifting weight, Sakura found herself comfortable and content, lids cautiously drooping to a close.

Before the darkness stole her light completely and smothered it, Sakura whispered shakily, "Kaka-sensei...?" When his visible eye peeked through its' lid, the rosette continued, apparently aware that she appeared to have his undivided attention.

"A-Arigatou... I... I wouldn't... there was no way I could have... a-ah! *sniff* Arigato gozaimasu, sensei! Watashi-wa anata-o aishtemasu; aishiteru!" With one of his genuine, behind-the-mask smiles, he pressed a soft kiss to her forehead (had he done that six months ago, he would probably be _dead_, seeing as _he_ had placed such a possessive one to the same place after _that_ happened), calming her down as her eyelids sagged, sleep and exhaustion overtaking her.

From the surrounding darkness, onyx eyes bled scarlet as he took in the affectionate sight before him; for the first time in his life, he felt a rage that made his hate towards his unmentionable sibling look shallow, and another emotion he never thought possible, that he would ever feel in his entire existence (though he'll plead the fifth, go into denial, about it later). Jealousy. With a final distasteful glare in the rosette's direction, the Uchiha disappeared, not a single leaf shifting out of place.

One truth still remained; no matter how hard he tried to fight it, nothing could stop _it_. Nothing could stop him from falling in love with the creature if his fascination, torment, _obsession_; the person in question being thrown and forcefully dragged into the same abyss of darkness that constantly shrouded him. This method was the only way to ensure that she stayed with him, _belonged_ to him, for whatever lives they had _after_ this one; she would _always_ be his, the only love he'd ever have, want, _need_. This was their fate.

* * *

Sakura woke feeling slightly sore, but other than that, content. Kakashi was out like a light, in a deep, peaceful slumber that would be awful to be woken from, so she left him be, inhaling his scent as she watched him sleep, the steady rise and fall of his chest relaxing, his calm facial features clinching slightly as he dreamt a dream that seemed to have once been serene, but was now bordering disturbing; his expression, though behind a mask, was flinching and scrunching up, a sign that his peaceful dream had just gotten ugly.

When his breathing had become hitched, irregular and laboured, his brow furrowing and breaking out in cold sweat, Sakura knew it would be in her sensei's best interest to wake him, _now_. "Kaka-sensei... SENSEI! _Wake up_!" Sakura hissed in the shell of his ear, shaking his shoulder roughly as he began to stir, a muffled groan escaping his throat in a deep, grinding fashion as he allowed his single eye to flutter open, deep onyx meeting emerald; Kakashi tensed, the sudden physical contact upon his shoulder making him realise that he had let his guard down, but when he recognised the hushed, feminine whispers, he slouched in relief, opening his single visible eye to meet her frantic, worried ones.

"Sensei, are you alright? You were having a rather nasty nightmare..."

"I'm fine. Arigatou, Sakura."

"Dou itashi mashite, sensei." With a small smile, Sakura then proceeded to squirm her way out of Kakashi's sleeping bag, stretching awkwardly, the loud cracking of her stiff bones a calming sound; it made her think back to all the times she had trained with her shishou, warm up stretches always painful and difficult to grasp the first time round; now she was limber and flexible enough to do almost _any_ form of stretch, no matter how complex they are proclaimed to be.

Thinking back to _that day_, Sakura paled, jumping to her feet and hurtling toward the bushes, bile and vomit clogging her throat, though there was nothing for the rosette to retch on, she still managed to throw up, coughing and choking on whatever contents had been in her stomach the night before; wiping the froth away from the corners of her mouth, Sakura straightened, only to be face with the rest of her team, all wearing looks of concern.

They had _already_ packed up the campsite, and were ready to proceed to the border of the Land of Clouds, crossing firstly through Stone in case _he_ was in hiding anywhere; but they weren't going anywhere if Sakura was still ill.

She would only be an extra weight to carry, a useless burden, if she was not well enough to proceed, so they had to confirm that she would be able to handle the rest of the journey with relative ease; the determined look on her face was also reflected in her eyes, saying a totally different story; stalking over to pick up her pack, she then headed toward the path that continued on to the Land of Stone, muttering harshly, "Don't you fucking _dare_ underestimate me! I may not appear well, but I feel perfectly fine; I'm not Tsunade-sama's apprentice for _nothing_, you know. Let's get moving, ne?!"

And with that, they all took off into the trees, struggling to keep up with the fuming kunoichi ahead of them.

* * *

_3 days later..._

Sakura sat with her back propped against the hard plaster wall of her motel room, head lolled to the side on an angle that allowed her to seem both pissed and upset as she gazed longingly at the full moon that glowed in the midnight blue sky, stars littering the plains of the darkness and setting it alight with luminescent silver-white light; the faint glow tinged her skin and brought little light to her dark room, but it brought all the comfort she could have ever asked for form the gods'.

Her team had had to go out on short notice as another lead had been found, and because Sakura had been feeling slightly ill at the time, she had been told to stay put and await their return; so here she was, staring idly at the stars, seeing as she had nothing else to preoccupy her, but still enjoying herself never the less. Smiling to herself, the rosette turned her gaze to the pristine lake that shimmered peacefully, glimmering like diamonds and lapis lazuli meshed together to create this immaculate scene of tranquil beauty, furred oaks swaying gently in the wind as it caressed her skin, freeing her locks from their confines and allowing them to sway along with the passing draft, whipping passed her face and to the sides of her cheeks, blurring her vision slightly as she stood and walked out onto the balcony, sixty feet from the ground, the highest level of the inn to be assigned a room; the rosette rested her chin on her palm, looking out at the night's scenery, relishing it as much as possible.

Tomorrow they were to head back to the Leaf Village, now that they had searched both Stone and Cloud thoroughly; all they had to do now was report their findings to the former Godaime, whom would be anything but pleased with the results of this endeavour. Still, this was the last chance they had to avoid another serious lecture and or possible beating, so anything that would get them out of trouble worked for them.

Sakura smiled wistfully, turning and walking back into her room, closing the balcony's glass shutters behind her, drawing the dark blue curtains, switched on the air-conditioner, before grabbing her fresh, cherry pink towel, heading directly towards her in-built bathroom, closing and locking the door, flicking on the fluorescent light as she did so; little did she realise that from the darkest corner of her room, two obsidian eyes had been watching her coolly, assessing the situation.

It was time to strike. _Now_.

The shower head blasted a spray of heavy hot water, the rosette yelping at the sudden surge of heat that connected with her skin, scolding it as if she were about to pour a cup of hot tea and the boiled water had spilt onto the exposed flesh of her hand, the nerves completely scrambled and anything but numb to the pain; sucking in a breath of air, the rosette shot out her hand, through the spray of hot water to quickly turn on the cold tap, the sudden surge of warmth trickling like lukewarm wax, easing the tension in her muscles, uncoiling the stiffened joints and leaving her feeling calm, relaxed.

Pulling her favourite cherry conditioner from the shelf across from her, she popped open the lid, sniffing the contents in satisfaction as she poured a glob of it into her palm, raising said hand to her long pink hair, gathering the wet locks together as she lathered it in, rubbing it into her scalp gingerly, making sure none of the pink strands went uncared for; once done, Sakura leaned back and allowed her hair to be caressed by the warmth of the water, washing out all remnants of the soapy conditioner, before giving her body a quick rubdown with her cherry blossom body-wash, kneading it into the soft flesh before it too joined her conditioner in the drains.

Turning the taps till they were off, a slight creak and groan of resistance escaping the cold water tap (it was seemingly not used much), Sakura turned and grabbed the closest washer, wiping down the walls as to prevent mould build-up (health hazards become of this), before hanging the washer out to dry, pulling on her favourite towel and wrapping it tightly around her frame, which had drastically changed over the course of three months; her breasts were the main problem, seeing as they towel barely covered them anymore, clinging to the curves of her well-defined hips and waist, her legs (although she isn't particularly tall) looking much slimmer and longer than they used to be.

Her eyes were what really struck a resonant chord with the rosette; they had a more mature edge, not as innocent as they had once been, which in itself was a good thing, but then at other times, the woman wished that she could revert back to her old self, one reserved of anger, hate and spite. Nowadays that was all she seemed to be capable of, all she had to connect her to life.

Pulling out her brush from her pack on the floor, Sakura combed the silky, dampened locks until there were no knots, placing it on the bench, next to the sink for easy access the following morning to come; sighing in satisfaction, the rosette turned towards the door, flipping the light-switch off as she unlocked the door, a sound _'click!'_ echoing in the eerily silent bedroom, said female walking out of the tiled, steam-soaked bathroom to be faced with the darkness and cold of her temporary sanctuary.

Shuddering from the sudden exposure to the cold from the toasty-warmth of her shower-place, Sakura sauntered forward, a sudden feeling of dread twisting in her stomach as she twirled around, only to be faced with... darkness. Sighing at her paranoia, the pinkette went to turn when she finally felt it; the presence of an all too familiar chakra source, the quiet intake of his breaths barely audible, coming from... _'Oh Kami-sama, __**no**__...'_

Sakura choked on a harsh scream as she swallowed hard enough to break her trachea, raising her right eye up with her peripheral, spotting the man whom haunted her constantly right behind her, looking at her shaking figure with what appeared to be utter amusement; he couldn't have imagined a better reception from her (though a part of him didn't like seeing her shake in fear because of him), and was curious to see what she had been up to since he last 'visited.'

The rosette didn't even have the chance to move, breathe, as the Uchiha already had her pinned to the slightly large bed that she was to inhabit for the night, arms clamped above her head as she struggled and squirmed violently, throwing all her weight to get him off of her; again, this tactic did not work, seeing as he backhanded her, earning him a bloodthirsty glare in response, Sasuke not expecting the reaction and was quite taken by her change in attitude. He was sure that _this time_ would be more... _interesting_ than the last, the promise of _that_ _alone_ enough to drive the Uchiha further.

Holding her small wrists between his left hand, Sasuke then yanked off her towel, her naked profile glistening in the moonlight, Sasuke's frame distorting the light and instead replacing it with that of shadows, not for one instant making her any less breathtaking than she already was; in fact, he would have to say she was more beautiful this way, in the darkness, with him. Sakura squirmed in futility, her cheek throbbing after the blow, but the familiar ache in her groin telling her that she had better get out of this, and fast, or else she was liable to become his sex toy... _again_. But before the rosette could even initialise a strategy to take down the Uchiha atop her, he plunged his fingers in her quickly dampening folds, a loud, traitorous moan escaping her lips as she arched upwards, noticing the intense difference form the last time he had done this; last time had been a struggle to prevent it, but this time... because she was so cautiously positioned on the bed, as still as she could be, she now noticed the odd sensations it invoked, and how not awkward it seemed to be... NO! She wouldn't allow this to happen, not again, not ever!

With a solid determination lining her emerald orbs, Sakura managed to charge enough chakra into her hands and arms, the preoccupied Uchiha too busy plunging his fingers in and out of her to notice what she was doing; that is, until she broke his grip, raising her fist to land a solid punch against his smooth, perfect cheek, sending him flying into the wall opposite. Now that that was done, the rosette sprung to her feet, ripping her towel from the chair alongside the bed, wrapping it around her as she sprinted full speed out the door, taking off through a window and out into the awaiting forest, the furry oaks, moaning and creaking as the wind picked up momentum, thunder and lightning crackling in the near-distance as she bounded through the trees, the enraged Uchiha gaining on her with such speed it almost seemed inhuman; then again, what kind of a man would rape a woman with the sole intention of keeping a well-defined secret, or for their own personal gain? Not a very decent one, that's what.

Sakura had just landed in a grassy clearing directly under the billions of sparkling silver stars when she was suddenly thrown forward, crashing into the largest oak trunk in the vicinity, the rosette letting out a pained gasp, coughing up blood as she slouched to the ground, all attempts at escape proved to be a failure; and there she was thinking she could find her team and seek their aid. To hell with Sasuke and his supposed 'place in Konoha', after what he had done to her, he could rot in _HELL_ for all she cared.

Sauntering over, Sasuke rubbed his cheek once more, glad that she hadn't had the strength to hit any harder; if she had, then he would most definitely be a goner. Smirking, he knelt down in front of the feeble kunoichi, whom was attempting to push herself up from the ground, but failing magnificently, and yanked on her long, bubblegum locks, forcing her to look into his eyes, which were crimson in colouration, the familiar tomoes of the Uchiha Clan's sharingan spinning ruthlessly as he slowly propped her down on the grass, removing the towel and leaving it underneath her, so that she wouldn't get a rash from the grass.

Wait, since when did he care about _that_? So what she had hay-fever? He had more problems than anyone (rape and abuse a few of those things), so why should he care for her discomfort? Well it didn't matter now; she was lulled off in a genjutsu, something akin to a sedative keeping her relaxed, calm and mostly unresponsive as he slowly unzipped his pants, freeing his painful erection from its' confines and properly positioned himself at her soaked entrance (not something that she wanted), before raising his hips and thrusting down as hard as he could, burying himself as deep inside her core as she would allow; if she had any will at all, then this would most definitely not have happened, but unfortunately for her, she didn't. All the rosette could do was lie there and wait, hoping that he would finish soon; again, that was unlikely.

Each thrust became harder, deeper, faster as she looked up at the stars, tears lining her eyes as his cock collided violently, purposely, with her clitoris, sending insurmountable amounts of pleasure to every pore in her body, not something that she could simply ignore anymore; it was as if each of his forceful penetrations were to invoke a reaction out of her, but she would definitely not give him the satisfaction for at least that. Her juices soaked his throbbing member as he pulled out, sitting at her entrance, to let her feel just how painful it was when you weren't allowed even a simple orgasm, which was something that even she of all people would come to understand soon; and that she did.

An aching pain shot up through Sakura's system, her taut abdomen stretching into a bleatingly painful tightrope, a fire burning that definitely was _not_ pleasant in the slightest, which was in desperate need of being extinguished; her eyes came to focus on the man upon her, smug smirk making her want to smash his pretty face in, but she knew that since she couldn't really move, he was the only hope of ceasing her agony.

Swallowing her pride, Sakura opened her mouth to speak, only to find that he was too busy nipping and sucking on her left breast to care, tongue tracing lines and circles around her nipple as she held back a scream; with that, the rosette realised what he wanted from her. He wanted her to scream, what, it didn't really matter, but as long as she showed that he had caused a reaction within her... When the sudden jolt of three fingers sliding into her drenched entrance, rubbing and kneading her swollen walls teasingly, the pinkette couldn't stand it any longer; she would only allow him _one_ scream, choking on whatever was left of her dignity as she did so.

"Aaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhnnnnnn!" The tears had spilt down the rosette's cheeks, burning like acid as she looked up at the dark ocean of black above them, stars of innocence, of dead souls, sparkling obliviously to her torment, her suffering; why wouldn't this end, why couldn't he just stop haunting her with his very presence, his memory?! Why couldn't he just LEAVE HER ALONE?! Said man looked at Sakura, eyes burning with guilt, anger, hate and lust as she all but glowered at him, tears still falling and landing with soundless abandon on the soft soil and grass beneath them; something about that bothered the Uchiha, but he smothered the thought as he moved forward, pressing his lips to her ear and whispering smoothly,

"Sore wa nan desu ka, Sakura? Feeling a little out of place, like a fish out of water? Do you want me to continue?"

"FUCK YOU!"

"Heh. Gomen, no can do; _you're_ the one I want to fuck, so just stay still and take it like a true shinobi would, _Sa-ku-ra_." Sasuke mocked sarcastically, eroticism dripping in hushed tones not easily detected as he once again positioned himself at her throbbing sex, nudging apart her vagina's lips as she tensed, biting her lip in aggravation and anticipation, managing to get in one last snappy retort before he plunged himself inside her once more. "Bite me!"

"Hmph. _With pleasure_." And with that, he thrust downwards, jamming himself inside her tight passage, grunting as he sank deeper, a strangled mewl escaping Sakura's lips as she fought the urge to cry out, in half surprise and half pleasure; the pain had long since disappeared, and was replaced with that same fiery need from before. Leaning down, Sasuke decided to live up to her rhetorical retort, gathering the exposed flesh of her left breast once again in his mouth before biting down, _HARD_; a scream of pain ripped through the rosette's chest, rasping its' way out of her throat and into the night air, echoing in the clearing where cicadas chirped seductively, a part of their traditional mating ritual.

Ironic how Sakura was being raped outside, under the stars, in a field where even the insects were against her; they were all mating consensually, whereas the pinkette was not, nothing there to save her from this cruel punishment. Though this time Sakura did not know what she had done wrong to deserve this, so how would she be able to prevent herself from making the same mistake again? The rosette's walls clamped tautly around his aching member, signalling the end of this torture; the snapping of the thin tightrope and the sheer force of her orgasm had the pinkette arching upwards, hand clamped dangerously hard over her mouth as she tried not to cry out, her upper body pressed flush against Sasuke's, whose arm snaked around her waist and lower back, holding her to his chest in an inescapable grip, her juices spilling from her swollen, sore clitoris, coating his cock and pushing him over the edge.

A strangled grunt caught in Sasuke's throat as he continued to lap and suck up the blood that he had drawn from her breast, making sure his mark remained before he allowed his climax to meet him, slamming into his body as he spilt his seed inside her, smothering her clit and bringing silver stars to the back of his eyes; or maybe he had gazed up at the same sky Sakura was looking at when he came, he didn't know.

The rosette collapsed back on the ground, Sasuke following tout suite, his head resting on her bruised breast as her chest heaved, black lining Sakura's eyes; feeling nauseous, she turned her head so that she was looking at the planes of the sky, the stars glittering ever-presently. Sasuke pressed a possessive kiss to the valley of her breasts, making her stiffen in response, but the sickening feeling would not disperse; she was falling in and out of consciousness, and knew she had little time before she passed out.

Just as the darkness claimed her, a shooting star fell from the sky, bringing the rosette some comfort as she shifted into an ephemeral dream; at least Sakura knew that although the rest of the stars did not care for her suffering, one did, and died for her sake, descending from the heavens and crashing to the earth, the earth where she had been soiled once more.

* * *

"-kura-chan... Sakura-chan! Wake up, we gotta go! Tsunade baa-chan won't wait forever for us, come on!" Said woman groaned, her vagina twitching with a profound knowing; the sudden realisation that she was back in her room, possibly naked, startled her out of her slumber, shaking off the nauseous waves of sickness as she jumped from her bed, alarm painting her features. Naruto looked at her in confusion, worry etched into his face as he leaned forward, grabbing her shoulders to steady her.

"Sakura-chan? Sore wa nan desu ka? What's wrong?" The pinkette looked at Naruto, then at herself, only to realise to her complete and utter shock that she was fully clothed, dressed in her favourite wine-coloured pyjamas. But why—?

"Uh... I'm fine... Naruto... arigato gozaimasu..."

"Are you sure...? You seem..."

"I'm fine, Naruto. I'll live, don't worry!" Sakura exclaimed in faux enthusiasm, smiling weakly as she excused herself, taking a long, hot shower before dressing and heading back to Konoha. Sakura wondered aimlessly why he had bothered to take her back, go as far as to dress her, and place her in her bed, as if nothing had happened? Whatever it was, she figured she'd never find out, so she didn't ponder on it.

When they reported back to Tsunade (the one responsible for this mission), she had told them that Sasuke had purposely strung them along, tricking them into following a fake trail for reasons unknown to them; but Sakura already knew.

He had drawn her out of the safety of her home, her comfort zone, only to do to her what he had six months earlier; though his motive was still to be discovered. One thing was for sure; Sakura, after careful deliberation and thought, had come to the conclusion that she was perhaps... no, she couldn't be... could she...?

All she could say was that if what she was feeling was accurate, then all hell would break loose, and everything would only become more complicated in the near future. Not only did he steal her innocence, but he stole everything that had ever brought her any light, happiness, _hope_; if what she felt was true, then she was sure that the next time they met she would not be able to handle it. She would not survive it, knowing that she was falling in love with him all over again; even after all he had done to her.

No... Sakura was like a shooting star; fleetingly beautiful, but destined to fall.

* * *

**a/n: Well, I know this chapter is shorter, but I am pressed for time, so here it is! Please review!! XD Arigato gozaimasu!**

**NOTE: Updates on not just this, but ALL my fics will be delayed temporarily as uni has just started up for this semester (to which I refer to as 'school', seeing as I am STILL learning) which equals a shitload of assignments to complete! I apologise for the inconvenience! Sumimasen deshita, ne! T-T *-bows to floor-*  
I will try my best on the most popular of my fanfics (_Chasing Your Shadow_ and obviously _Fourth time's the Charm_), but I can't promise you guys anything! =(  
Hope you stick around for my other stories! =D  
Uhhhhhhhhhhhh... hmmm... Oh, and there are only three chapters left on this story, so please be advised! (There will be no more than that! Gomensai!) Ja ne! !)**


	4. Marionette

a/n: Well, we're on to the final rape scene; I wonder how this will unfold?? MWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA*cough cough, choke, splutter, hack hack*HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!! Ahem... Anyways, hopefully this won't be too over-tacky, cliché even, but there will be a slight interlude between the "potential" rape scene, and the actual scene itself (Fuck I'm using that word a lot in this note! =P); and yeah, all this crap I've written above will make sense once you get up to the bits I am referring to, so don't worry, you're not losing crackers and cheese just yet (though I'm pretty sure I've lost mine... *sweatdrops*)! XD Soooooooooo, without further adieu, hereon commences chapter 3 of '

_**Fourth time's the Charm**_**!' ENJOY! =D**

**Disclaimer: Sheesh, do I REALLY have to repeat myself?! 'Naruto is the property of my soon-to-be-deceased-sensei-Kishimoto sempai-if-he-does-what-I-think-he's-gonna-do-to-Sasuke!' There ya have it; except he (being Sasuke) is MINE ladies, so XP!!! (Sumimasen deshita if you take offence to my comment, but it is the truth and I am unashamed to admit it as fact.)**

* * *

Chapter 3

Marionette

* * *

The moonlight crawled mischievously into Sakura's bedroom, seeping through the thin crack that her drapes left, pale silver-white light flooding the carpeted floor of her room and turning everything a surreal shade of distorted colours that did little to amuse the shaking, naked rosette; tears stained her pale, flushed cheeks, plopping soundlessly onto the silky wine sheets that were wrapped around her, the body lying alongside her breathing in a calm, steady rhythm, oblivious to her distress.

He looked like an angel, raven bangs framing his pale face which in itself was completely devoid of anger, resentment, _hate_; it was simply... peaceful, tranquil, like there was nothing on the planet that could possibly upset him whilst he drifted off into a brighter place, a place where he could dream freely and find a happier moment, a moment that he could live in, even for only a few short hours. The place he could perhaps call home. Sakura watched him sleep and found herself being sucked back into the past events, and how it all lead up to _this_ once again.

* * *

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

_Flashback_

_Sakura strolled along the riverbank of the Land of Rivers, crossing through to meet the border of Sound; Naruto had reluctantly deployed said kunoichi on a solo mission to the one place that none of the ninja of that particular squad would have ever thought to travel back to, especially because of the memories it stirred and tossed up in the heat of things. _

_But the rosette had persisted, declaring that she was fit and ready to head off into enemy territory, to gather Intel on their potential threats current movements; since Orochimaru had been slaughtered (guess who), the shinobi of Sound had had no Otokage to follow, which had then led to further crisis's such as the blind, psychotic rampages of that village's ninja, murdering innocents in cold blood and taking female civilians as hostages, to vent their sexual frustrations on. _

_All this and more only lead Naruto to assume that the worst would soon come to pass, and that they would inevitably wage war against the Fire Country; an outcome that the Rokudaime did not wish to see occur, not while he was alive and in rule that is. "Sakura-chan... are you sure you can handle this..? I mean, that's where—"_

"_I'm sure Naruto. Arigatou. I'll always love you for that; for always worrying about me unconditionally." Sakura smiled, the light touching her eyes for the first time since she had arrived back to the village; Naruto had noticed that his friend had seemed... agitated, tense, but whenever he had asked her about it... it was always the same old reply. _

'_Don't worry about me; I'm fine, just tired is all. And... well you know... anxious... about... er... S-Sasuke....-kun... Can't believe that we just missed him, __**again**__! Hopefully we'll get him __**this**__ time round... hope...fully...' It was then that the pinkette would zone out, a glazed look to her emerald orbs as she thought deeply about something that affected her solely, burning far deeper than any blade; again, the blonde knew better than that. _

_Something had happened between her and Sasuke, whether past or present, and he would strive to figure it out, was determined to help her ease through her torment by digging out her darkest secret, one that even he would never be able to understand. Fuck, even Sakura herself had no clue as to why this secret was so... withdrawn, hidden as it was now; she could simply tell them what had transpired, __**twice**__, and then voila! _

_He would be on a first class trip to hell, or whatever dominion that would accept him; but then why was she so reserved, reluctant, to speak her piece?_

"_Ne, Sakura-chan! Are you listening?" Naruto exclaimed in frustration, exhaustion coating his thickly layered voice as he tried to avert Sakura's attention from her aimless ponderings; thankfully it worked, as the rosette's eyes snapped up to meet Naruto's, emerald clashing with cerulean. _

_"Uh... hai, I'm listening Naruto. Continue on." With a languid nod, Naruto turned, clasping his hands behind his back as he spoke, malice dripping from his voice as he properly explained the situation. _

_"Rumours are being spread around the Five Great Shinobi Nations, rumours that need to be ceased, by any means available; the people are becoming restless, and even I don't have the key to what we are looking for, to what is true, and what is false."_

"_N-Naruto... I don't follow... what rumours exactly...?"_

"_The people of all the shinobi countries are spreading the myth that the Legendary Sasuke Uchiha is in search of the 'Scrolls of Kinshi Chouin* (*'forbidden sealing'),' enabling him the power to not only gain control over all the Five Shinobi Nations, but over the Jinchuuriki themselves'. That sort of power in the hands of a certified S-ranked criminal wanted in every division and faction of __**our**__ world would be disastrous; especially if he decides to wage war with it. There's no telling what he could do with that kind of power; if he __**does**__ decide to initiate battle, Sakura-chan... then I'm afraid... that not even __**I**__ can stop him... nor what his fate will be if he gets caught before such a time and opportunity arises. So... the main objective of this mission..."_

'_Oh Kami, what have I gotten myself into...?'_

_With a strangled swallow, Sakura finished Naruto's sentence, fully understanding now both __**why**__ this mission was so important-and solo-, and why __**she**__ of all people shouldn't accept it. "The scope of the mission is to gather facts and information on one Sasuke Uchiha, and engage in battle; a battle to bring him home, and prevent any further damage to the Hidden Villages. You want me to being him home... for good."_

_End of Flashback_

_*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*_

_And so now here she was, bounding through the treetops toward Sound, which was at least another three or so hours away; the rosette vaguely noticed the sun setting in the not too distant east, smudges of black, purple and indigo painting the rapidly darkening sky. _

'_Not good... If I can't make it within the next few—fuck, I won't even go __**there**__! That would be physically impossible for someone like me... although I'm positive someone like Lee could... and Sas—' Sakura instantly regretted the impulsive urge to think his name, as she was sent hurtling toward the forest floor, the rumble of distant thunder echoing throughout the empty clearing as the rosette's body collided with the unrelentingly hard ground, a resounding 'crack!' and 'thud!' echoing in the shells of Sakura's ears, shooting pain bursting to life and crawling like rapidly heating flames up her body, the root of said pain centred in her right leg, the one to which she had landed on; on an impossibly disturbing angle, she noted loathingly as she propped herself up, a stab of pain ripping its' way up Sakura's body, bringing out a pained, hoarse cry form said injured woman. _

_The faint rustling of leaves and the snapping of a twig was enough for Sakura to assume that she was indeed not alone; but strangely enough, she was not alarmed in the slightest. Just... curious, to know who would be out in the middle of no where for whatever reason it was that brought them there in the first place. _

"_Dareka imasu ka?* (*'Is anyone there?')"_

_The rustling ceased, only to be replaced by the steady approach of a lone figure- male by point of reference (that being his build)-, whom seemed to be impossibly large in terms of solidity and muscle stature; it unnerved Sakura to witness someone so… massive waltz casually towards her, like she indeed was in no real danger. From her purview, on the other hand, had it not been for the leg, Sakura would have long since made a hasty retreat, never once looking back over her shoulder; he was indeed a terrifying sight to behold… not that she had actually seen his face yet, but she could conjure up a pretty good mental image of said monster. _

_Her breathing hitched as the man towered over her, the shadows surrounding obscuring his features so that she had no means of tagging the man whom could possibly kill her, and burning his face to memory… that is, if she lived through the encounter. "Who's there?" The rosette could not keep the quiver from her voice, even as she stared defiantly at the man whom rose above her; she had already lost everything that she had ever once valued. What else did she really have left to lose?_

_A warm, husky deep voice replied cautiously, concern lacing his tone as he knelt down and revealed his true identity to her. "My name is Juugo. Juugo Bipolar. I am a teammate of Sasuke-sama." Her scream echoed throughout the darkened forest, the wild swishing of the tree leaves and the startled chirps of non-nocturnal birds leaving a solid imprint on the eerily cold, frosty night air._

"_I am deeply ashamed to have frightened you so, Sakura-san. Sumimasen deshita." Juugo bowed down to the ground, the flickering embers of the fire making a crackling noise as they chewed through the firewood, said flames licking the dark night air, bringing a warm, crisp light to the campsite the two shared, an orange tinge to the rosette's ivory skin as she stared at the rather imposing, large, but overall kind and gentle man whom bowed before her in a dumbfounded manner; she had always hated formalities, even with a perfect stranger. _

_"Onegai! Cut that out! Juugo-san, there is no need for apologies! I was just a little… __**startled**__ when you said you were… __**his**__ teammate. That is all that needs to be said; now take a seat!" The orange haired man stared in awe at the woman before him; not only was she incredibly beautiful and intelligent, but she was kind and merciful too. Something __**he**__ of all people thought he did not deserve; smiling warmly, he then proceeded in pushing himself to his knees, before wandering idly over to the spot next to Sakura, her hand resting on the place he intended to sit upon, on her insistence of course. "Arigato gozaimasu, Sakura-san; I truly do not deserve your kindness. Especially since… not after… I… I would like to take this opportunity to apologise on behalf of Sasuke-sama." Sakura visibly flinched, but nodded for him to continue._

_ "He… really __**is**__ a kind man, even if he himself does not see it; though nothing can justify what he did to you. I know words are not enough to ever really take away whatever conflicting emotions you hold for him, but know that what he did was out of the kindness of his heart; he did it out of the sheer want of not having you hurt in any other way or form. Whether you or he realise__ it, he did it because he did not want you to get hurt over the mediocre things he has been involving himself in; he wanted to shield you from his past, his present, what he has become. Never forget that; never forget that he cares for you more deeply than he would ever let on. I see it in his eyes; whenever he hears of you- especially the self-harm you have inflicted upon yourself-, he instantly warms up, and his eyes hold a light I have never seen brought out by anyone but you. Although when he heard that you had been making suicide attempts... he killed several hundred enemy shinobi just to vent his anger; all of it upon himself of course. Just remember that, Sakura-san; know that Sasuke-sama does indeed care for you, and leave here with the knowledge that you may feel the same way." _

_Just as Sakura was about to make a protest, Juugo silenced her, saying the words that she dreaded to hear uttered, even by her herself. "I see it in your eyes too; the love you hold in those depths alone say how much you truly care for him, and that you could never truly hate him. You are, and always have been, in love with him, haven't you, Sakura-san? Even after he forced you into submission." Sakura winced, the memories his words triggered, as well as the reminder that she had been too weak to prevent it, making her feel ill; standing, the rosette chose to make a break for it. Enoug_

_h was enough; she couldn't take anymore of Juugo's words, words that were meant to be reassuring, but only brought upon more pain and torturous suffering through the re-enactment of the entire charade. The pinkette started into the trees, her leg now completely healed, bolting like a startled jack-rabbit evading a fox; she was unfortunately too slow for the orange haired man behind her. Without missing a beat, Juugo threw his hand out, clasping her wrist in an unbreakable hold as he drew her backwards, his spare arm ensnaring her waist in a tight, steel grip; Sakura screamed at the top of her lungs, to which he only rocked back and forth gently, cooing soothing reassurances in her ear. _

_Eventually the rosette calmed, seeing no further point in futile struggle; he would not hurt her, and she was only wasting her chakra and energy reserves through the pointless act. Relaxing her tense frame, Sakura allowed Juugo to guide her steadily back to the camp, carrying her bridal style like a young child that didn't weigh a thing to a dim cave, moss beds set up for the night; said man propped the exhausted rosette onto one of the fore-mentioned 'beds', before settling down himself._

_ Just as sleep was about to claim him, Juugo heard the faint whisper of the woman only metres away from himself, the strain evident as she asked her request. _

"_Juugo-san... onegai.... don't tell Sasuke that I was... here... with you... onegai! I... I don't want him to know that I made any contact with not just one of his teammates, but another man; he has this keen aversion to my selective choices in men- basically meaning that if it isn't him, then no one else can have me- and if he were to ever find out that I was with you... I just don't want you to get hurt... and I don't want you involved in this... __**predicament**__ of mine... if need be, he'll most likely seek me out again, and when he does... I... I truly dread that day, and hope with all my heart that it never comes, but if it does... then I don't want you involved in it; I... I'll face his wrath myself. So onegaishimasu! Don't tell Sasuke-k—__**Sasuke**__ that I was here. Ne?" _

_There was a moments silence before Juugo replied; modest integrity the only thing heard, but that was enough to rock Sakura into a reasonably peaceful slumber. _

_"Of course, Sakura-san; I swear to you on my life that Sasuke-sama will never know of this encounter, and I shall do my best to keep it that way. You have my word." Thankfully, Sakura drifted off before Juugo silently added in his mind, 'But we all know that little peace will be earned from this expedition; Sasuke-sama grows increasingly restless with each passing day, and is becoming irritable. __It has been six long months since he last bedded a woman, and it has started to take its' toll on him both mentally and physically; ironically enough, __**you**__ were the last and only woman he has touched sexually in both that periodic span and since __**that day**__ a year ago. It is only fitting that you be the only one he desires to be intimate with now more than ever; he may be the Uchiha's proclaimed 'genius' after Itachi, but it doesn't take much to figure out that he is completely dense when it comes to his own emotions.__ He has yet to realise that he has fallen in too deep, plunged into unknown territory without first evaluating the field of study; he has yet to realise that he has indeed fallen for __**you**__ of all people. __**Sasuke Uchiha **__has fallen in love with __**you**__, Sakura Haruno.'_

_ And with that, everything was smothered of its' light, the only thing close to innocence was the demure, tranquil expression of a peaceful Sakura, oblivious to the impending fate that awaited her ahead of the line._

* * *

_Sakura had said her farewells to the ever-kind Juugo, whom she had grown quite attached to over the past evening, and wished him well; with her last words imprinted on his lips, Juugo smiled sadly, before turning on his heel to report back to his leader, understanding the consequences of his actions and what they would inevitably toss up later along the lines of destiny, of fate._

* * *

_One week later_

_

* * *

_

_Sakura sighed. She had been doing that a lot lately; that, and not sleeping, being the terminal- but recovering- insomniac that she was. The rosette was exhausted, but that fatigue was all worth it in the end; she had just arrived back in the village, her home, and reported to Naruto with vital information. There had been movements of not only Sound, but the ever-elusive Sano himself, whom had been setting up deals of all sorts with every important figure in almost every one of the Hidden Villages; his men had been deployed to protect the 'goods' whilst they were being transported, and now that their exact locations had been pinpointed, Naruto had the opportune chance to prepare a counter-measure involving the ANBU members that had been so callously and freely disregarded as quote 'Rokudaime dogs' unquote; man was Sakura gonna enjoy Sano's reaction to yet __**another**__ 'interference.' _

_But there had been no sign of Sasuke, much to Sakura's relief; she didn't think she could face him with her emotions in such turmoil. So now here she was, relaxing in Naruto's plush Hokage chair as he deliberated his next course of action, which would be quite intricate and complex from the looks of things; he had disappeared into the lounge for the previous Hokage, and had not resurfaced once in the past four hours. _

_Sakura had been threatened by said baka that if she even __**attempted**__ to make an escape, he would quote 'Strap you down to my target practise spread and throw kunai and shuriken at you until you get the message of not disobeying my authority' unquote; quite unnerving, had she not known the blonde better. He was just concerned for her safety, and did not want a repeat of what he witnessed unfurl before his azure eyes a year ago to the day; the thought made the pink haired kunoichi flinch, remembering that exactly one year ago to this very day, she had been permanently soiled and destroyed, never to be the same again. _

_But although what had happened to her was truly tragic, scarring her in the worst ways possible, Sakura still managed to find __**some**__ good out of the turn of events; the experience had forced her to grow up and realise not everything was as it appeared to be, no matter how believable it may have seemed to the untrained eye. It made her realise that Sasuke was no longer the man that he used to be, and boy did she know __**that**__ well, all thanks to his previous inflictions towards her— namely her body. _

_But then again, she couldn't help but feel—_

"_SAKURA-CHAN!" A loud, gravelly bellow sounded in the claustrophobic confines of the spacious (yet seemingly small after Naruto's loud, obnoxious holler of excitement) room, snapping Sakura out of her reverie and back into the present; said blonde was kneeling in front of the stunned rosette, one hand waving about frantically in front of her face, the other gripping her shoulder in a gentle yet solid grasp, making the chances of escape of any sort next to none. Her emerald orbs snapped up to meet his cerulean, said man's eyes glowing with something akin to.... wait, what...? He seemed to be... concerned about something..._

_ But what could he possibly be—?_

"_Ne, Sakura-chan...? I... I have to go away for a bit... to... train some more... Tsunade baa-chan's in charge till I get back, so until then, you gotta take orders from her, 'kay?" With an uncertain nod, Sakura rose to her feet, swatting her clothing to attempt to smooth them out, before once again meeting azure; Naruto looked at Sakura as if he had only just realised something drastically horrifying about her, or in a way that told her that he knew something that she didn't. Something terrifyingly important. "H-Hai, Naruto-kun. Urm... may I.... go home now...?"_

"_Hunh?! Ah, er, yeah, if you want... but Sakura-chan! Please be safe on your way there, and know that if you wish, there will __**always**__ be a spare room here for you; just ask and I'll have the arrangements down to pat immediately, ne?" With a small, warm smile and a nimble nod, Sakura turned and strode out of the door, the faint 'click!' of the doors' lock snapping into place as she closed the mahogany barrier, setting off toward her apartment; heeding Naruto's advice, Sakura took the longer way, using her advanced shinobi skills to arrive there in little to no time, taking out her keys to unlock the door. _

_Stepping inside, the rosette slipped out of her sandals, locking the door behind her as she waltzed into her bedroom, large in comparison to the rest of the building, gathering her toiletries and night-gear before stepping into the bathroom, closing the door but forgetting to lock it as she stripped her clothing off until she stood bare in front of the mirror, the fluorescent light buzzing in a dizzying way as it played with her reflection, casting eerie shadows on the wall behind her, making her see things she hoped weren't real, just a figment of her imagination; things like a certain Uchiha sociopath. _

_Sighing to herself in relief when she saw that nothing was there, and that indeed her mentality was stable (for now), the rosette stepped into the shower cubicle, drawing the shower curtain over so that only her outline could be vaguely identified from the outside. Unfortunately for said pink haired kunoichi, what she had __**thought**__ she had imagined had most definitely been there, observing her with keen interest from the shadows, sharingan blazing as he gazed through the wooden impediment before him; all he knew was that it had to go, and so that was what he did. Without so much as a second thought, the Uchiha relic approached the unlocked door and turned the handle, making no sound whatsoever as stepped calmly into the steam-soaked bathroom, the white of the tiles somehow managing to burn Sasuke's eyes; the colour had always disturbed him for some reason, not that it could be called a 'colour' anyways. _

_More like something that needed staining; a certain crimson red sprung into Sasuke's mind, bringing that famed smirk to his lips. Sauntering forward, Sasuke ceased his movements as he caught sight of Sakura stiffening, noticing something... out of place; the rosette had been calmly washing away the weeks' grime (not having the chance to bathe on regular intervals on her last mission), when something odd had occurred to her. She hadn't washed her hair! _

_No wonder she felt the need to flinch in slight offense; the disgusting smell of her oily, matted hair was all that she needed to convince herself to scrub it clean. Pulling her cherry shampoo and conditioner from its' traditional place on the mantel, she popped the lid, sniffing the contents half-heartedly as she poured a handful of each into her hands, mixing them in together as she roughly massaged the cleanser in, relishing the feeling on her scalp; that all changed, however, when a smug, detached voice echoed within the small confines of the cubicle, Sakura's arms instinctively flying up and around her glistening wet, naked body as a sort of shield as she all but slipped on the water-slicked surface._

_ "Need some assistance with that... __**Sa-ku-ra**__?" Said woman spun on her heel in a haphazardly sort of way (there __**is**__ water, and in this case, even though she is a ninja, this situation is acceptable for her to be clumsy, ne?), only to be faced with __**him**__ once again; __**Sasuke**__. "W-What the fuck do __**you**__ want?! Get away from me, you bastard, I HATE YOU!"_

"_Aw, such harsh words from such a frail woman," Sakura growled at his implication, but was soon silenced by his next comment, "but unfortunately for you, you could never __**really**__ hate me; and sorry to say, but this is a __**business trip**__, so there isn't any way I can just simply up and leave."_

"_Well you certainly found it easy back __**then**__, ne, __**Sasuke**__?!" Sakura spat angrily, red staining her vision in a swirl of bloodlust as she raised an arm to hit the imposing man, only to have her wrist caught from... behind?!_

"_Heh, nice selective opinion Sasuke; who woulda thought that __**this**__ woman would have such ample features? Too bad she's yours, otherwise I would've—"_

"_You would have __**what**__... __**Suigetsu**__?" Sasuke hissed dangerously, the black tomoes of his sharingan evolving into something far more developed.... almost the same as the one in Sakura's nightmare—_

"_N-Nothing! N-Never mind, i-it isn't important!" Suigetsu stuttered nervously, the obviousness of his fear almost laughable, had Sakura not been cowering in it as well; Sasuke must have done some pretty awful things to make even his own __**teammates**__ so frightened of him in general. But back to her current dilemma...._

"_Hn. Take Karin and Juugo to the meeting place; Sano is awaiting our arrival, and I don't want him to think us tardy, nor refusing his...'__**request**__.' I just need to tie up a few loose ends, and then I will meet up with you there; understood?" With a curt nod, Suigetsu left the room faster than he had arrived in it, leaving Sakura to her own devices; so much for the 'captive' theory. Sasuke would probably have had no problem in killing Suigetsu to get to her anyways. So much for teamwork.... _

_"Well, let's get down to business; tell me where Naruto is, Sakura, and you leave here unharmed. I won't lay a finger on you." Sasuke muttered in monotone, a flicker of untrustworthiness flashing through his endless obsidian orbs; it would most likely result in anything but the non-touching-contact promise. He __**would**__, Sakura knew it, but was going to take her chances and go with the truth anyways. "I don't know; Naruto said something about leaving to train somewhere, but refused to answer me directly when I questioned him on it." Okay, so it __**was**__ a __**partial**__ lie, but on the off-side, it was __**mostly**__ truth; Sakura __**had**__ intended on asking, but the look in Naruto's eyes had said that the rosette didn't want to know the truth of the matter. _

_And indeed she didn't. _

_Unfortunately for her, Sasuke's natural tendency to overlook certain details made him blind to reason, only seeking an appropriate answer to his simple question; he simply 'Tched!', before approaching her with such speed that it made her feel sick, slamming her naked frame against the cool tiles of the shower wall as he all but grinded up against her, his erection becoming more prominent against Sakura's upper-pelvis, bleatingly painful for the recipient of said boner. _

_Sakura stiffened, and although Sasuke's clothing remained as a barrier, she knew that that wouldn't be a problem for much longer if she didn't give an answer that he could accept as a fact; but the rosette had... blanked, simply forgotten what it was she had been aiming to achieve._

_ "Hm? No answer for me? I saw the two of you talking; who would have thought that the both of you would have become so close in my absence; but then again, a lot of things change over time. I heard that that usuratonkachi even got himself a wife, as well as the position of Rokudaime. Heh, and there I was thinking that he was too busy trying to bring me back here to even bother with those sorts of things; I guess the saying must be true. 'Time does heal all wounds'; in this case, you all managed to move on and proceed in life, forgetting all about your little rescue attempts to 'save me', when I clearly didn't need the saving in the first instance. A shame really; and here I was thinking that that baka as well as the rest of Team 7 would be able to get back together over a bowl of ramen and—"_

"_STOP MOCKING US!" Sakura screeched angrily, tears streaming traitorously down her ivory cheeks as she let her tongue do the talking. "Don't you __**dare**__ say that we gave up on you! We spent __**six**__ fucking __**years**__ chasing after you, and until recently, have started __**again**__!" Sasuke raised his eyebrows at this new piece of information; so they __**had**__ been attempting to bring him back, hm...? "Naruto had __**always**__ had hope that you would be brought back safely, and yet you have the gumption to question his—"_

"_But __**you**__ don't want me back here, do you?" Sasuke asked quietly, startling Sakura. Since when had he ever cared how __**she**__ felt about things...? "And I doubt that Naruto would welcome me back with open arms if he knew about all the things I've done to you over the past year, hm?" Sakura paled at this, bringing a satisfied smirk to Sasuke's lips, the knowledge that she cowered by his very presence alone an awe-inspiring feeling; though something deep inside of him was gnawing away at him, eating him inside out. _

_The fact that she was afraid of him also bothered the Uchiha to no ends, but he quickly squashed it and replaced it with his solid barriers again, smirk creeping back into its' former position on said man's face. _

_"Hm, so you haven't informed him of our... __**trysts**__ have you...?"_

"_I FUCKING HATE YOU, YOU SON OF A MOTHERFUCKING BITCH! BURN IN HELL! BURN IN—MMPFH!" Her screams of anger were cut short as he clamped a strong, large hand over her mouth, relishing in the newfound quiet, Sakura's muffled cries falling on deaf ears, in a half literal sense; taking this opportunity, Sasuke decided to put his newest method of torture to work, remembering his goal from this little... confrontation. Smirking once more, Sasuke allowed his spare hand to wander, groping and squeezing in a surprisingly gentle fashion at Sakura's enlarged breasts, thumb grazing her hardened peak in an almost teasing, playful manner; a strangled moan caught in Sakura's throat, half escaping by accident, the rest contained fairly well by the shaking pinkette. _

_Had she allowed the whole noise out, it would have indeed been something to behold, something a lot louder than the pathetic, meagre excuse for a sign of pleasure; arching her back away from the man atop her quaint frame, Sakura tried with the best of her ability to shove him away, but this only seemed to fuel and encourage his actions to come out more brash, __**faster**__, than it had originally. Sliding his hand down her toned stomach, his long, elegant fingers meeting her shamefully soaked pink curls, Sasuke then proceeded in rubbing the very tip of his index finger against her vulva, dragging out a prolonged, guilty moan; this wasn't fair, not in any way or form. _

_Why couldn't they have fought to the death or something along those lines?! This form of torture was inexplicably the worst kind, and now that Sakura had had sex more than once, she understood and embraced this fact; it was cruel, and Sasuke knew it. That was why he had chosen __**this**__; to invoke a reaction out of her. Had they fought, he knew full well that he could easily have slain her on the spot before she had even taking a single step; so that was why this was so suitable. It provided a challenge, and one that he could allow himself to completely enjoy, savour, to his heart's content; and that was what he planned to do._

_ Swapping fingers so that his thumb lightly grazed her distended protuberance, he traced a lined down to her entrance, parting her folds slightly as he slipped in his middle finger, a strangled cry cut off as Sakura bit down on the palm of Sasuke's hand, drawing blood, which dripped from his hand and down the rosette's chin, plopping onto the cool tiles of the bath's floor; Sakura's back was now completely pressed against the tiled wall closest to the taps, her neck craning upwards as she looked at the roof above, the hot water scorching her skin and leaving blotchy red stains in its' place as she continued to bite down on Sasuke's strong appendage. _

_Said owner of that hand was too busy working on pleasuring her to even feel the pain that her infliction was supposed to bring, fingers pumping in and out of her shaking frame; the rosette felt tears streaming down her face, all because she knew that this wouldn't stop until she gave a believable answer. But how could she? How could she tell him something that she didn't even know herself? That was the question that needed to be asked. "Mmmmnnnggghh...Nnnnmmm..!" _

_Sakura felt her body trembling violently as she felt herself nearing her peak, but was graced with the sudden feeling of her being... empty? Opening her lidded eyes till they were fully round, Sakura looked up to see Sasuke... __**Nani**__...? He was looking at her in what appeared to be... __**sympathy**__? Why the fuck would he look at her like that?! He'd raped her __**twice**__ already, for fucks sake! But then why did she suddenly have an unsettling feeling in the pit of her stomach—?_

"_You like that, hm?" That same smug smirk graced his lips, the one that she used to love as a little girl (and possibly still did), but detested with every fibre in her being right now, tugging further at the corners when Sakura nodded feebly; fuck did she hate herself for being so weak! "Hmmm, is that so? Well, I think I'll prolong your suffering a little longer, until I get what I came here for; so tell me, where is Naruto, __**Sa-ku-ra**__?"_

"_I already told you, I don't know!" Sakura screeched as she tore his bleeding hand away from her mouth, tears once again lining the rims of her emerald orbs, shining with guilty lust; if there was any a time, then now would be one of those moments where she would find a corner of the world to curl up into and die. "Stop lying to me, Sakura; you're starting to test my patience." Sasuke spat irately, kneeling down so that he could take her left breast into the wet confines of his mouth, the swollen mound throbbing as his tongue traced circles around its' hardened peak; Sakura thrashed wildly, knowing that her body wouldn't be able to resist for much longer, just as it hadn't every other time he had done __**this**__ to her. _

_Subjecting her to this cruel torture; it made her sick knowing that she __**wanted**__**it**__ this time, and was having an internal debate with her inner as to whether she should or should not take this sitting down. Obviously the side of her that wasn't ruled by her hormones won the battle, but not by much; Sakura was startled out of her sudden stupor as Sasuke's tongue started trailing lower... towards her...?!_

_ "Hmph, it seems that I'll have to be more convincing in order to pry out what I need." Sasuke chuckled darkly between wet kisses against her navel, abs, pelvis, lower and lower... That was the last straw. Raising her fist, Sakura brought it down till it made indefinite contact with Sasuke's jaw, temporarily sending him into a state of shock as the rosette flew out of the bathtub, toward the door which hung on its' hinges; funny... Sakura didn't recall hearing any indication of it being torn away from the wall—_

"_Kyaaaahhacck!" Sakura screamed as loudly as she could, hoping that the neighbours would hear and come to investigate the racket; Sasuke had recovered quicker than the last time, and was fast enough to get a hold on her upper arm before she had even made it to the door, dragging her back towards his hot body (a/n: in more ways than one! *wink wink, nudge nudge*). "That was very naughty of you, __**Sakura**__." Sasuke hissed angrily, the pain finally numbing as he gripped her arm with enough force to break it; the startled rosette managed to loosen and escape from his hold, but only long enough for him to backhand her, yanking her arm until she swore it would come out of its' socket, throwing her across the small expanse of the room, against the large bathroom mirror, inevitably shattering it into thousands of pieces, said shards embedding themselves in her skin, slicing the flesh until it was an image of distorted crimson ribbon, shredded into many pieces._

_ A pained cry left Sakura's plush lips, blood gushing from the wound on her head, trickling in slow rivulets from the less serious inflictions; the bleeding became sluggish when Sakura focused her medical chakra into the wounds, slowly healing them, one by one. But whilst she did this, she was unable to defend herself, put up a fight; Sasuke advanced, a killer glint in his cold onyx eyes, wiping the blood that she had managed to draw when she punched him with that insane strength. He'd have to thank Tsunade for that later. _

_"You __**will**__ submit to me, Sakura; I can keep this up all night if need be. So tell me, WHERE IS NARUTO?!" _

_Sakura sobbed, knowing full-well that he would keep his promise, and make her suffer; the injuries that she had sustained only proved this fact, that he was indeed a sadist in every way. _

"_I... told you... I don't... KNOW, GODDAMMIT!" A vein protruded on Sasuke's forehead, signalling the end of his patience; when had she become so fucking stubborn?! "__**Wrong answer**__." And with that, the true punishment began. Sasuke knelt down so that he was at eye-level with her soaked folds, staring into her frightened emerald orbs once more before he forced her trembling legs apart, slinging them over his shoulders so that they were out of the way, before he closed the distance between her groin and his tongue; Sakura's eyes bulged as she watched him drag his wet glossa from the base of her sex to where her swollen vulva lay, stiff and anticipant for whatever was to come. _

_A harsh scream left her lips as he remorselessly began to suck on said protuberance, nipping it playfully with the fronts of his teeth; his fingers had the right idea, as they too joined in on the massively awful torture session, plunging in three at once, kneading into her already caving walls as she cried out, tears once again leaking out from the corners of her eyes. This was pushing the limits of her body, and Sakura was fully aware that Sasuke knew of this fact; why else was he doing this? _

_After several thrusts with his fingers, Sasuke pulled them out, leaving her empty and vulnerable to his tongue, which would surely be a lot worse than his slim appendages; and boy was she right. Dragging his mouth away from her now quivering purplish vulva, Sasuke then proceeded in lathering circles around her swelling aperture, Sakura's thighs squeezing said man's head as she tried to control her moans, which wasn't going down too well; she had to stop him, __**now**__, before he indeed went too far with it. _

_But again, it seemed Sasuke beat her to the punch; without much warning whatsoever, the Uchiha plunged his tongue into her increasingly tightening passage, moist heat enveloping fore-mentioned glossa as he swirled it around, rubbing it against her slick walls until he found what he had been searching for. The rosette's body stiffened till she resembled that of a statue; his tongue... it... her... not possible... _

_The tremors in Sakura's body went into overdrive as his tongue teased her clit, the friction from the movement bringing out louder, throatier moans than it had before, the sensations intensifying with every twitch, swish, lick he made; the knot in her stomach was so close to snapping it wasn't funny, but just as she was about to climax, Sasuke jerked away, lapping up the juices that coated his lips until there was no trace of it ever existing. _

_Panting, Sakura raised her eyes to meet his, which were burning with an intense knowing; he understood her pain, and would be more than happy to oblige in helping her quell that discomfort, but only __**after**__ she told him what he wanted to know. Fuck, if only she knew—NO! She would __**never**__ turn in Naruto's whereabouts, whether she knew or otherwise (which was seemingly the case here); he was her best friend, and she'd be damned to all hell if she ever uttered a word of it. His chances at prying anything out of the rosette were diminishing as her resolve strengthened, and Sasuke was no idiot; he could tell by the newfound determination in her eyes that she wasn't bluffing, that she wouldn't breathe a word of anything Naruto related to **him **of all people. _

_He would just have to push her to her very limit if he wanted a result; he was running out of time as it was anyways. _

_"__**Sakura**__... this could end very __**badly**__ if I don't get what I need; you wouldn't want to have to endure anymore __**suffering**__ now, would you?"_

"_I already told you this, Sasuke! I DON'T KNOW WHERE HE IS; HE REFUSED TO TELL ME!" Sakura screamed angrily, her confidence faltering and diminishing just as fast as it had come as she watched the Uchiha completely lose his temper. _

"_YOU CAN'T SERIOUSLY EXPECT ME TO BELIEVE THAT BULLSHIT, NOW DO YOU?! I SAW THE WAY HE LOOKED AT YOU; ALMOST AS IF HE __**KNEW**__ WHAT WAS ABOUT TO COME! HE __**HAD**__ TO HAVE TOLD YOU, OTHERWISE WHAT WAS THE POINT IN HIM LEAVING SO SUDDENLY?! __**HUNH**__?! ANSWER ME __**THAT**__, __**SA-KU-RA**__!"_

_The full brunt of his harshly spoken words had Sakura flinching as he all but rammed himself against her aching sex, grinding into her with so much force that she could literally feel the broken shards of mirror digging deeper into her back, barely touching her spinal cord; liquids flowed steadily from the trembling pinkette's folds, whom was now so close to feeling that unmatchable bliss that it was becoming quite painful now that is was being withheld. _

_Sasuke grunted in irate annoyance, gripping the insides of her thighs with so much power that they were already starting to bruise a nasty, purplish-blue; his nails dug deep into the tender flesh, causing a pained cry to leave her lips, but she held on, knowing that it was only a matter of time before he grew tired of the whole charade. He would leave, and everything could return back to its' abnormal ways; the thought alone of said man leaving her again caused a sound ache to rip through the hollows of her chest, tears springing to life with that turbulent emotion. _

_Why didn't she like the thought of him leaving anymore? It was everything that she had ever asked for only a year ago, but now? What was so important about him that made Sakura want to keep him by her side, even if it was only for physical confrontations such as this? "WHERE THE FUCK IS HE, SAKURA?!"_

"_I DON'T KNOW! I DON'T KNOW, SASUKE-KUN!" Sakura choked on her saliva; she had just called him the forbidden name. She was never supposed to... why did she...?_

"_What... did you... just call me?" Sasuke whispered quietly, all of his brash movements halted along with his train of thought; what was it about that nickname that made him feel so at ease? "A-Ah! I-I!" Was all that Sakura could say before she burst into tears, knowing full-well that he would most likely hurt her even more; as she prepared herself for more pain, she heard the distinct shuffling of feet, the crackling of said feet walking over the broken glass of her former mirror, before an unidentifiable source of warmth was draped around her shoulders, obscuring her body from view. _

_Her emerald orbs flickered open only to see Sasuke's retreating figure, said man raising his hands and snapping his fingers together, the illusion coming undone; there stood her door, completely unharmed, and her mirror in perfect condition, the rosette leaning against it for support._

_ '__**Genjutsu**__...?' Sakura thought in mild disbelief, wondering why he had cast one so powerful in the first place; did it mean that he was trying to cut off her senses, meaning to prevent anyone from hearing the racket she was making, the commotion? What the fuck was going on?! Sakura looked up to see that Sasuke was no longer there, the shifting of her wine coloured curtains the only indication that he had been there; but did that mean that everything that he had stimulated whilst she was under the genjutsu was fake, did not actually happen? _

_The rosette looked down to her thighs to see not only her juices smeared down her upper legs and over her pink curls, but the nasty purplish-blue hue of the bruises he had left, his permanent yet temporary mark; Sakura pulled her legs to her chest, resting her head on her knees, before she burst into tears once again, the towel that __**he**__ had so gingerly wrapped around her remaining there long into the night, never once faltering in keeping her warm._

* * *

_One month later_

_

* * *

_

_Sakura sighed in a tired sort of way. Ever since Naruto had come back, she had found that she couldn't sleep, worrying for his safety; that, and the constant ache that tore through her throbbing core. Sakura refused to admit that it was becoming a major hindrance to her daily life, but now that she stood in a pleasantly warm shower, alone, without any prying eyes to watch? _

_As uncomfortable as she felt with the thought of masturbation, it seemed to be the only way to stop the discomfort that had frequented her body as of late; Sakura looked down at her hands, which were shaking quite badly. The rosette seriously did not want to have to do this, but it seemed to be her only other option, no matter how many months she had spent burning one signature thing into her mind; 'Masturbation is bad, it is wrong, but most of all, it is dirty; never resort to it, __**ever**__.'_

_But she had finally run out of options, and she was losing too much sleep over it to care anymore; she would make it quick, and then make a few quick cuts to her thighs before she went to sleep. Sakura stood firm with her decision, but just as she was about to even think about moving her hands, a sultry, baritone voice echoed in the small cubicle, raising the hairs on the back of her neck. 'What is __**he**__ doing here—?'_

"_Heh, now who would have guessed that sweet, innocent little Sakura would ever even __**contemplate**__ touching herself? You must be very __**frustrated**__ to be resorting to __**this**__." Sasuke mused impertinently, sending sparks of pain into the pinkette's abdomen, the burning between her thighs worsening the longer this confrontation dragged on; 'Kami, help me!' A smirk appeared on the Uchiha's face as he listened in on Sakura's thoughts, quite entertained that she was begging GOD to help her, save her; well, that could always be interpreted in more ways than one. _

_In a movement so fast it had Sakura stumbling backwards, Sasuke reappeared behind the pink haired minx, said woman colliding with his chest; out of masculine instinct, Sasuke wrapped his arms around her waist, holding her firmly to himself as he let his hot breath fan the nape of her neck, her ear, her cheek, bringing a deep crimson hue to the rosette's face. "Hmph, in answer to your earlier prayer to Kami; __**with pleasure**__." _

_And that was it; Sasuke's hand darted down between her curls to where the heated flesh lay in keen anticipation, burning with a scorching need as he drove his fingers up into the tight lips, burying them in as deep as they would go, a loud cry emitted from the anxiously uncomfortable Sakura, whom as much as she hated this, __**wanted**__ it just as badly; she squirmed and thrashed, knowing that this was both wrong and dirty, but that was all silenced when his juice-slicked appendages plunged in and out, at a steady rhythm, pumping into her till all she could make out were the silver stars behind her lids. _

_"Heh... Kuso! You were __**this**__ tight for so long? Fuck, I can see why you were heading down __**that**__ path; though don't get me wrong, you masturbating would be a sight to behold—"_

"_Hah! St...op... one...gai... Sas...uke...-kun..." Sakura choked out through her haze, the pleasure that racked her body becoming too much for her to keep tabs on; she was going to explode at this rate... _

_"No." Sasuke replied bluntly, before surprisingly enough switching off the shower taps, and scooping her into his arms, carrying her out to her king-sized bed; what surprised the rosette more was the fact that he laid her down gently, carefully, as if he were afraid to break her, before slowly, almost enticingly, sliding off his white haori, letting the soaked fabric fall to the floor, along with his arm-warmers, shinobi sandals long since removed and left in the far corner of the room, placed neatly next to Sakura's. _

_That trait about Sasuke had never changed, at least; the fact that he was too much of a perfectionist to stand mess of any shape or form. That thought brought a smile to said woman's lips, before it was squashed almost instantaneously when Sasuke proceeded to the edge of the bed, crawling like a predator that had just cornered its' prey, until he hovered above her stilled form, looking down at her with eyes that held anything but indifference; no... they held more __**depth**__... an emotion aside from lust that Sakura couldn't place... _

_"__**Sakura**__..." The way he said her name had her shivering, but in a very good way; gods was he good at making her feel things that no one else ever could. His eyes were lidded, and when he suddenly leaned down to close the distance between their faces, Sakura couldn't help but feel a jolt of electricity run down her spine, realising with sudden clarity that he intended to __**kiss**__ her. Her __**first**__. In a panic, Sakura clamped her hand over his mouth, preventing him from moving in any closer, which alerted the Uchiha's attention; for some strange reason, he had had the compulsive desire to kiss those plush pink lips of hers, so when he actually moved in to do so, she __**stopped**__ him. STOPPED HIM. _

_Sasuke stiffened, not knowing whether he should be on high alert or not, but when he opened his eyes, he saw Sakura looking away from him, pale and tense; narrowing his eyes, Sasuke pinched the rosette's chin between his fingers, turning her back so that she was facing him. What he saw shocked him, quite frankly. Sakura had tears brimming in her eyes as she stared at him with glassy apple green orbs, a light hue of pink painting her cheeks as she stared at him pathetically, almost as if she was resigned, would submit to his every demand; everything except for __**that**__._

_ "One...gai... not that... anything... but that... you can... fuck me... I don't care... but onegai.... __**not that**__... you... you've already stolen everything else from me.... that had any meaning... so... onegai... don't steal __**that**__ from me... it's the only thing... that I haven't lost yet... __**my first**__... and I won't... onegai!" Sakura felt the tears stream down her cheeks, burning the flesh and leaving puffy red stains in its' place, blurring her sight until she could barely make him out anymore; similar to her first experience, except one difference. _

_She wasn't begging him to stop this time... no... she was begging him to let her keep her first kiss, so that she may use it one day when she found love; but not with him. Feeling compelled to, he leaned over to whisper in her ear, softly, huskily, as he freed himself from his pants, positioning himself at her entrance before raising his hips in preparation. _

_"You __**need**__ to know this.... you need to know that I'm not doing this to __**hurt**__ you... no.... I'm doing this because I __**care**__."_

_ And with that he thrust down, her walls clamping tautly around his member, a startled yelp leaving her lips as he buried his cock in as deep as he could, pulling out slowly, before repeating the process, though it was slower, more erotic than it should have been; after all, what was so sensual about rape? Sakura's breaths hitched as she felt him raise her legs so that they clung to his muscled hips, the feeling of him sinking in even deeper causing the rosette to moan even louder, as broken and husky as they were; she didn't want this, but if it meant that he would leave her be, for good? _

_Then so be it (a/n: yes, she is in firm denial that she doesn't want this, when in reality she's trying to cloak her true feelings; that, and she's trying desperately hard to ignore the pain of him leaving her forever when she clearly doesn't want him to). Sasuke's pace picked up, as did his momentum, and soon Sakura's whole frame was jostling with the firm movement of the creaking bed, her head off to the side as she waited for it to be over, to end; the muscles in her stomach fluttered lightly at first, before clenching dangerously tight as one of Sasuke's thrusts hit a sore spot, her sudden orgasm raising her back off of the crimson sheets, legs gripping Sasuke's sides as if they were her anchor, her lifeline. _

_Sakura didn't even bother to fight the urge to cry out, as it managed to find its' way to the surface anyways; Sasuke continued to bury himself inside of the now spent rosette, until her walls clamped around his member so tautly that he had no choice but to cum too, spilling his juices into her as he collapsed, his head buried in the crook of Sakura's neck as he grunted in exhaustion, sleep washing over him until his breathing finally settled. _

_Sakura was shocked. He... had fallen asleep...? Normally he would have up and left, leaving her to wallow in her own self-pity, but he had just willingly allowed himself to drift off into a deep slumber, in her home? On top of her, no less! Gasping when his hair tickled the hollow of her throat, all due to the fact that he had nuzzled said spot as a sign of affection (not that he realised; after all, he __**is**__ asleep), she gently rolled him off of her until he was lying on his back next to her, sleeping soundly, looking... at peace, almost... __**happy**__? _

_As Sakura sat there and watched him, she couldn't help but feel her heartbeat accelerate, the feelings that she had buried so long ago long since resurfaced; and with that profound knowledge etched into her brain, Sakura let her tears fall, remembering his words as if they were the only thing keeping her sane, __**alive**__. _

"_**You **__need__** to know this.... you need to know that I'm not doing this to **__hurt__** you... no.... I'm doing this because I **__care__**."**_

_End of Flashback_

_

* * *

_

Sakura remained in her seated position for what seemed to be hours, when in reality it couldn't have been more than a few minutes, just... watching him sleep. It was truly a sight to behold, beautiful in its' own right; even Sakura could appreciate fine art when she saw it.

That was when noticed it; the long scar that trailed down his left side, crossing to the area behind his back. It seemed to have been a recent flesh-wound, one that hadn't had the chance to be healed properly, and ended up infected, said injury a deep reddish-purple; it had to be painful, no doubt about it. Being a medic-nin, Sakura could tell, and instinct and or habit was what drove her to do what she did, not anything silly like her 'feelings' and whatnot; leaning over him, Sakura let her hand hover over the wound, a green hue painting her hand as she completely repaired the damage, which was quite extensive, even from its' outer appearance, the scar disappearing until it was no longer traceable on his body.

Just for a precautionary method, Sakura scanned for any other signs of internal damage, only to find nothing; it seemed that overall his physical shape was perfectly fine, above average one might say. Sighing, she moved backwards, only to hear a loud banging on the door, inevitably startling Sasuke out of his slumber and alerting him for any impending danger; turning, he was shocked to see that he was still with Sakura, in her bed, sleeping as if he belonged there.

Not that he had felt uncomfortable sleeping in the same bed as her. In fact, it felt natural, almost... _right_.

"SAKURA-CHAN! OPEN UP! IT'S ME, NARUTO! C'MON, ARE YOU AWAKE?!" Sakura practically sweat-dropped at his plain idiocy, before realising that Sasuke was still here. Wasn't he only looking for Naruto a month ago?!

"Don't worry, everything's been sorted; I'm not after him anymore, s'all good." Sasuke stated bluntly, stretching his arms above his head in a strangely similar posture to Naruto's, though Sakura highly doubted that the blonde could have pulled it off with half the flare and plain sexiness that Sasuke had just shown; cracking his sore joints, Sasuke then proceeded in sliding out of the bed, gathering up his now dry clothing from the floor and heading toward the bathroom, closing the door with a sound _'click!'_, and flicking on the fluorescent light.

For several moments it was dead silent (if you count Naruto banging on Sakura's door with enough force to knock it off its' hinges), until the door reopened, and there Sasuke stood, completely dressed and ready to leave; Sakura just turned her back to him, gathering her nightgown and robe before walking to the very corner of her room, sliding the skimpy material over her skin and pulling the robe tightly around her body, tying it before turning to face the Uchiha once again.

He stood there, impassive and stoic as he gazed at her somewhat... longingly? Sakura ignored this, and instead moved to her window which was locked and covered by a thick drape, soon to be drawn back and opened for the man's convenience; he looked at her blankly, before slowly making his way toward the opened frame.

But before he could step any closer, Naruto's gravelly voice penetrated the silence, his words bringing Sakura's heartbeat to a stop.

"SAKURA-CHAN! HURRY! SASUKE-TEME'S IN DANGER! THE FEUDAL LORDS OF ALL THE HIDDEN COUNTRIES HAVE SIGNED A CONTRACT WHICH HAS SENTENCED SASUKE TO _**DEATH**_! HE'S GONNA FUCKING _**DIE**_, SAKURA-CHAN!" The blood left Sakura's face as she turned to see Sasuke's reaction; he was completely indifferent, as if he had already predicted this to be.

"S-Sasuke...-kun..."

"It's fine, Sakura. It was inevitably going to happen, anyways; may as well go and face the music." Sasuke stated bluntly as he edged toward the window, closing the distance between them; the tears threatened to spill as she gazed into his bottomless obsidian orbs, which were alight with an emotion neither of them could describe, but it was enough. Sakura leaned up on the tips of her toes, neither controlling her body nor fighting it as she raised her lips to his, brushing against them lightly, a feather-light kiss, yet not actually a _kiss_; Sasuke backed away slowly, stopping her movement and leaving her looking at him anxiously, like she had done something wrong.

Smirking, Sasuke raised his arm and swept the stray hair from her face in a loving manner, tucking it behind her ear as he leaned in and whispered in her ear, "Enough. You're saving that for someone else, right? Hmph, besides, after all I've subjected you to, I don't deserve that kind of reward; keep it."

"S-Sasuke-kun!" Sakura stuttered out with less conviction, tears oh so close to spilling as she looked at his face, which was devoid of all coldness, indifference; it was the same face of the man she loved from so long ago.

A small smile came to Sasuke's lips as Sakura said his former 'fangirl name', the one thing he thought he had hated more than anything else aside from his brother; though he never really hated it when Sakura said it...

"Heh. _I thought you didn't want me back_."

Was the last thing Sasuke uttered into the shell of Sakura's ear before he vanished, leaving her feeling cold, _alone_; crashing down to her knees, the rosette let the tears come, cascading in rivers down her pale cheeks as she clutched her shoulders, her _heart_.

Everything ached.

But what hurt the most was knowing that she had indeed given her everything to him without her consent; he had played her so many times already, and yet he still managed to capture her fragile heart in his hands.

She was like a marionette; she could be manipulated in every way, but was still human enough to have allowed herself to fall in love.

* * *

**a/n: END OF CHAPTER 3!! XD**

**Man, that took a while, and I do apologise!! Been WAY too busy to even THINK about writing (I should be doing assignment work for uni right now... *sweatdrops* =_=|||) ! T-T**

**Yeah, this was SUPPOSED to be a rape scene, but it sorta bordered something in between... meh. Hope it suffices anyways, seeing as I was trying to capture a side of both of the characters that would ultimately set the mood for the next chapter (last official one before we move on to the epilogue!)! ^^ Hope it was okay! I also updated chapter 8 of 'Chasing Your Shadow' guys, so if ya wanna take a look, be my guest! **

**Please review; they inspire me to continue writing even though I am an INCREDIBLY busy person! ^^ Ja ne, until next time!! =D **

***-...TBC...-***

***-Sasukeluva 4eva out-***


	5. Finally

**a/n: Well, here it is, the final OFFICIAL chapter to **_**'Fourth time's the Charm'**_** before the epilogue!! XD Ooooohhhhh, I wonder how this will unfold...? **

**Hah, well, I'M pretty sure I KNOW (after all, I WRITE THIS STORY MAN! XP), but you guys'll just hafta wait and see; should hopefully be interesting, to say the least, seeing as this was the chapter that I put the most thought in to (heh, the ONLY one; I didn't plan the others', like I always never do for my other stories. Just go with the flow people! XD), and have to admit I probably like this one the most... don't ask me why though, coz you won't get an answer... except maybe an insane look like this... o_O... or possibly this... =_=|||... yesh, that one will be used in situations where I think that you're a fucking idiot and won't dignify your comment with an answer... **

***AHEM* Aaaaaaaaaannnnyyyways, I shall proceed by letting you in on a little secret.... THERE IS NONE!! LAWL! Gotcha that time, ne?! XP So without further adieu, I present to you the final chapter *sob* of **_**'Fourth time's the Charm.' **_**Man, this feels weird... solemnly depressing somehow... the first work that I will soon be concluding... for good... kaput... *sniff, cries***

**This is dedicated to all of my persistent reviewers, whom always manage to make me smile! =D *cries happily* THIS IS FOR YOU GUYS!! XD ~xoxoxoxoxoxox~**

* * *

Chapter 4

Finally...

* * *

_One month later (prior to 'rape')..._

_

* * *

_

Sakura walked slowly down the streets of Konoha, not really paying attention to what she was doing or where her next destination would be; all she knew was that she needed to keep moving, otherwise the memories of _him_ would come flying back, all too clear, like a vivid dream gone wrong. A nightmare. Her worst one yet.

The realisation that she couldn't live without him, that she... _loved_... _him_.... it... there were no words to describe how gut-wrenchingly awful it felt, how much the rosette really wished that Kami would smite her on the spot, where she stood; after all, that was the most generous fate anyone could offer the pinkette, whom had allowed herself to truly lose herself in the haze, only to wake up realising with a sickening clarity that she was indeed once again... in love with Sasuke Uchiha.

The man she had _sworn_ she would hate for whatever pathetic excuse of a life she had left going for her, the man whom had stolen everything that had ever held any meaning to her, the man whom until recently had tried to capture her best friend; no, she shouldn't be allowed to be living, breathing, the same air, as all the other innocents and bystanders.

No... it was a luxury that one such as her did not deserve, nor did she take for granted. Naruto and Kakashi were still in the dark about the 'rape' incident just a little over a year and a half ago, but whenever they 'subtly' tried to broach the subject, she'd just as quickly proclaim that she had other more important matters to contend with; not that she had been lying, just that she had to avoid anything that would possibly remind her of her feelings for a certain rogue-ninja-who-shall-not-be-named.

That, and the fact that if he was found any day soon, and caught, then it was bye-bye to the Uchiha line as we know it; apparently not too long ago it was confirmed that Itachi Uchiha, wanted shinobi and member of the criminal organisation Akatsuki, had been killed by none other than his ototo, whom had finally reached his goal as an avenger—after all of these years away from the village, after everything he had said and done to get him to that point... he had finally completed the act.

Retribution was served, and it couldn't have come at a better time; now that he had lived up to his promise, he could safely be captured and brought to face the jury at the gallows—execution was his punishment for every crime and sin committed against the jurisdiction of the village's law enforcement. As a former member of Konoha, he was still accounted for in terms of abiding the government's policy without fault, and since he had broken practically every rule, regulation, law and code of conduct enforced by those politically inept bastards, his sentence was clear as day; but the rosette didn't want to think about it anymore—it made her feel queasy and strangely ill...

Shaking her head to clear the negativities, the pinkette stretched, the wind once again having its way with her silky, bubblegum locks, the two enwrapped in a seductive dance that no one could halt for any reasoning; it was just like her feelings for—

"SAKURA-CHAN!" Said woman's head snapped up only to meet the freaked out gaze of Naruto; oh Kami, they couldn't have—?!  
"Sakura-chan, Sakura-chan! Come quickly! Hina-chan! She's! I-I dunno! Just... come, onegai!" Without even waiting for a reply, the boisterous blonde bounded off toward the Hokage Mansion with the full assumption that she would indeed follow; well, she would, but not for his benefit—Hinata was the main concern.

* * *

"How do you feel?" Sakura asked in a strictly professional tone, eyes darting from her flow-chart to the very faint Hinata, whom was a gaunt, sickly white; not her usual creamy ivory complexion. Still, she managed a weak smile, even with her high fever, whilst Naruto bounced from one foot to the other, worry dripping off of him like raindrops colliding with the ground; he had always been like this, for every sick or injured comrade, especially Sas—

_Argh! I'm supposed to keep my mind off of him! Focus, girl!_ Sakura scolded herself mentally, annoyed at how frequently his face popped into her mind as she tried in vain to live her life, free of his presence; well, if he was captured by ANBU, then that was a definitely something that could be arranged—

_Again with that crap! Hinata needs you now, so do not lose your temperament __**now**__!_

"Sa...ku...ra...-chan..." The rosette's cool green eyes met Hinata's soft, velvet ones, which were warm even when she was extremely sick; Sakura couldn't help but admire her friend's beauty, a twinge of jealousy colouring the pink haired med-nin, but she quickly squashed it, knowing that being envious of another was a truly unbecoming trait to have. Hinata quietly asked for Naruto to leave, to which he begrudgingly and reluctantly did, closing the door behind him as he waited in the foyer for however long was necessary; by this point, Sakura had a really bad feeling about what the raven haired girl had to say.

"Nandayo, Hinata-chan?" Sakura whispered cautiously, as if her words would somehow manage to change the impact of what Hinata was going to ask and or tell her; Hinata smiled, tears welling in her eyes as she reached out to place a warm, gentle hand to the rosette's stomach, said water sprites leaking from the crevices of her eyes as she choked out the words that the pinkette had dreaded to hear, from anyone.

"I...I see... a small... chakra... flow in... here... Sa...ku...ra...-chan... you're—"

"Sakura-hime!" The sound of the door almost being torn off its' hinges was what was predominant in the shell-shocked rosette, but she turned instantly, as if by an automatic mechanical response to her name being called, only to see a member of ANBU crouching before her, frantic and panicking as if it were the last day on earth; and the minute the words left his lips, Sakura knew it truly was.

"Uchiha Sasuke was captured by a team we had previously deployed to Kiri; he has been severely injured, but managed to kill three of the four—Hatake Kakashi managed to drag him back, but is in far worse condition than that of the Uchiha. Without any immediate treatment, both shinobi will—"

"Nani?! Where?!"

"Wards two and seven! Make haste!" With that, the ANBU member disappeared, leaving no trace of his former presence; Sakura threw the flow-chart that she had in hand onto the bedside table alongside Hinata, bowing politely before flying out of the room and bolting down the tiled hallways, heading toward the closest staircase that would take her to where the critical wards were.

_'How could this have—?!'_ The rosette skidded haphazardly around a corner, only to collide into a frantic Naruto; the hell was he doing over here...?  
"Sakura-chan!" The blonde noticed the pinkette's sudden arrival, tears in his eyes as he all but crushed the med-nin in a bear hug that could possibly have broken many bones had she not been prepared for it beforehand.

"D-Did you hear? About Kaka-sensei and Sas—"

"Don't worry Naruto; I won't let anything happen to them—trust me." Sakura interjected avidly, hoping to block out the incessant nagging at the back of her mind that was now _screaming_ disaster; nothing would take them away from her, she would see to that.

Without any hesitation, the rosette approached the first out of the two wards, and pushed the door open, praying to Kami that it wouldn't be _him_, not yet, not now—_'clack!'_ One step closer... smooth ivory skin..._'clack!'_... another step closer... long, ebony eyelashes... _'clack!'_ Spiky... silver hair; Kakashi-sensei.

The loud sound of static beeping alerted the pinkette to his current condition; lacerated iliac artery, severed femoral artery, broken scapula, torn Achilles tendon... he was definitely _not_ in good condition, that was for sure.

"Sakura-hime! You've arrived! Onegai...! Do what you can!" A member of the medical corps quipped hastily as he stumbled forward, hauling the shaken pinkette toward the bench where her unconscious sensei lay, awaiting her attention; blood spurted from his upper pelvic region, signalling a vessel haemorrhage that would kill him in less than three minutes judging from the amount that gushed from the wound, if not attended to immediately.

Placing her hands over Kakashi's worst sustained injury (lacerated iliac artery), the rosette let the green flow of her medical chakra pour into the lesion, stitching the inner walls and veins back together so that they had once again reunited as one, sewing up the flesh of the deep gash until all that was left of the previous wound was a mended, faint pinkish scar, illuminated by the harsh beams of the fluorescent white light overhead; many were aghast at the sudden departure of the critical injury, but managed to keep an aloof, composed posture whilst in Sakura's presence, all the while keeping the bleeding of the silver haired man's injuries under control—without it, he surely would have died on the table sooner.

From there, Sakura allowed her hands to hover over the femoral tear, chakra gradually hemming the muscle tissue back together, repairing the ripped skin and darning it till there was a thin scar left in its wake; healing the Achilles tendon was slightly more difficult, as the torn ligaments and swollen tissue was constricted into a tight ball of pure swelling, but it took little effort or work—the major problem was both the broken scapula, extremely rare but not uncommon in shinobi, and the blood loss. Neither posed as major impediments, and after a good hour tending to her sensei (donating her own blood seeing as they were the same type), he was in stable condition, recovering rapidly; wiping the sweat from her brow, Sakura exited the door only to sit down on the closest couch, collapsing in a heap as the brunt of exhaustion finally hit her.

Closing her eyes, Sakura tried to recover whatever chakra she could before heading off to tend to Sasuke, whom was allegedly in _worse_ condition than Kakashi had been; _fun_. There was a dull ache behind the rosette's glistening emerald orbs, the beginnings of a soon to be splitting headache setting in as she stared blankly at the fluorescent white-washed walls across from her; the sombre, transient glow it gave off soon left Sakura cringing, her eyes watering from the very sight of the plaster foundations—she would have to get them tested for reliability later. Sighing morosely, the pinkette rose from her comfortable seat, slowly dragging her heavy, unresponsive legs toward Ward 7, where Sasuke was sure to be awaiting immediate medical attention; _joy_.

Sakura knew, even as she let her eyes flutter to a close and allowing natural instinct to guide her to her destination, that this encounter would not end well; the knowledge that she actually _loved_ him, _again_... it _hurt_ in a strange way. After everything he had forced her to endure, after the way he had treated her... it made no sense to the rosette; he abused her, tore away her virginity, was unabashedly taking advantage of her every weakness, always coming back for more—and even with all of these inequities, she still couldn't bring herself to hate him, couldn't push him far enough away from her.

It was just _impossible_, and she not only despised herself, but her foolish, submissive heart, which had allowed her to feel the way she did now; with every step closer to him, the more anxious and uncomfortable the pinkette grew—she wanted nothing to do with him, yet she craved his closeness, his proximity, more than anything else in the world. She hated him for making her surrender once again, for causing her love reignite; it wasn't fair, the cruellest, most unjust punishment she could have ever conjured, and now it was to become her demise—she would die, wither away, of a broken heart, because Sakura knew only too well that this man had no capability of ever showing love or affection to another, no matter how truly 'precious' they were to him.

It was the way it had always been, and not a lot would ever actually change it; that was a fact of life, hard to accept, but one that had to be gradually acknowledged and perhaps if lucky overlooked—but that seemed to be an unlikely scenario. Sakura stopped suddenly at the opening of a steel-barricaded door, where distorted shouts were reverberating off of; it seemed that they had yet to stabilise the renegade Uchiha avenger—the rosette was sure that by the end of this session, she would most likely literally drop dead from all of the chakra overuse.

Relaxing her tense frame, Sakura inhaled deeply, before throwing the door open, it's hard _'slam!'_ echoing down the hallways of the eerily silent hospital until it met its chaotic end.

* * *

The repetitive beeping of Sasuke's heart monitor was slowly lulling Sakura off into a restless slumber; indeed she had used too much chakra, and the result was wooziness, lethargic fatigue, a splitting migraine, and aching muscles—death would have been far more appealing than what the pinkette was currently enduring, dattebayo. Letting out an exhausted sigh, Sakura leaned back into the chair, rubbing her throbbing temples as she recalled all of the damage done unto Sasuke.

_'Seven broken ribs, internal bleeding in eight places, four residing from vital organs; a perforated lung, a crushed vessel in his heart, torn ligaments, broken breastbone, snapped clavicles, punctured liver and a twisted forearm—so much damage.... How did Kaka-sensei manage all of __**that**__ alone? It took me __**five**__ hours to completely stabilise him, __**and**__ to have healed all of his inflictions without leaving many scars... he'll have to thank me for that later, though I doubt he'll be regaining consciousness any day soon; even being an Uchiha, his recovery will most likely be delayed by at the least three months, if not more—stupid, inconsiderate bastard!'_

Sakura glared at the motionless figure that lay in the bed across from where the pinkette was currently resting, hoping that he would somehow magically feel the pain, though she didn't really think that he'd need much more agony than what he was to feel when he awoke, that being in at least a week, maybe even two, all depending on how stubborn he decides to be. Sakura rolled her eyes; she wouldn't be in the least bit surprised if he were to wake up at that very instant!

Smiling to herself at the fonder memories that thought stirred up, Sakura gazed quietly at the stony Uchiha's relaxed features; he was a shade of gaunt white, all due to the high fever he had suddenly contracted from the strain of his body trying to heal itself, as well as the after-infection that had managed to get in through his bloodstream—the pyrexia itself was startling, as he had a temperature of over one hundred and four degrees Fahrenheit (a/n: forty degrees, a very dangerous temp to have, as normal body temps vary from thirty-six to thirty-seven degrees Celsius), meaning that he needed constant supervision, as well as a cold atmosphere and dabbing cloths wrapped around ice-packs for his forehead.

After spending more than twelve hours in the room with the sleeping man, Sakura had found herself longing for her own bed, her fluffy pillows, the warm, snug comforter... and these thoughts were not encouraging the near-dead kunoichi at all! Exhaling heavily, the rosette stood, intending to walk over and give Sasuke his hourly check-up, when a sudden wave of nausea caused the pinkette to stumble, dropping the flow-chart as she fumbled for a ledge of some sort to help her remain standing; the migraine's ferocity almost very nearly doubled, blurring Sakura's already clouded vision, and causing her to clutch her head with her spare hand, soothing the pain as best she could with whatever chakra she could muster—no migraine should ever be to _this_ degree!

Panting when she overexerted her remaining reserves, Sakura attempted to straighten, only to feel her stomach clench painfully, bile clogging her throat and threatening to choke her; her first instinct was to find a toilet so that she wasn't throwing up in front of anyone, so that was what she did. Throwing the door open, the rosette staggered down the rather crowded hallway, lurching toward the closest bathroom's door; a medic called out to her, but she just ignored him, hoping that she would make it in time—thankfully she did, and luckily enough it was a free singular cubicle.

Slamming the door almost dangerously, Sakura managed to collapse onto her knees and lift the toilet's lid up before retching violently, coughing and spluttering as whatever had formerly been in her stomach came up, a disgusting 'splurching' noise being made as the congested remains filled up the bowl, vomit froth dripping from the corners of her mouth as her chest heaved painfully, the pinkette sagging until her heated flesh came into contact with the wintry cold of the toilet's base, her forehead planted to the smooth marble.

Terrific, she must have caught an illness whilst tending to one of her numerous patients—Hinata's words echoed in Sakura's head, causing her to go completely numb.

"_I...I see... a small... chakra... flow in... here... Sa...ku...ra...-chan... you're—"_

But that couldn't be... could it? There wasn't any way— Oh Kami, iie... It can't be...

The panicked knocks on the door snapped Sakura out of her ponderings, and for once she was glad for the distraction. "Sakura! Ne, billboard-brow, everything okay? A medic rushed to me and said you didn't look too good; well, not that he was implying that you were ugly, 'cause you're hot girl, and I was worried so I thought that I'd—"

"I...no...-pi...g..." Sakura rasped through a blocked throat, voice thick and hard to understand since she had recently expelled all traces of food in her gut, therefore ultimately worrying her friend all the more. "Sakura? Ne, nandayo? Doushita no?"

Sakura tried to stand, but was unfortunately too nauseous to even be able to make out which of the six doorknobs she was seeing was the right one, so she just moaned in a sickly way, which was all that needed to be said before Ino literally knocked the door down, missing the barely conscious medic by little margin; Ino screeched upon the sight of her best friend crumpled in a ball on the floor, paler than a ghost that had just been told they were going to hell, and looking as if she were about to chuck up another round of vomit.

The blonde called upon the other medics, and demanded that they get Tsunade onto this immediately, before setting her undivided attention back to her ill friend, whom was currently resting her head at the mouth of the toilet; _'Don't tell me she's gonna—?!'_

_'Splurch!'_ Sakura began retching and heaving her chest in violent spasms, stomach muscles contracting almost painfully as she coughed up what little fibre and nutrients she had left in her, emptying her guts until it was all for show in the toilet; Ino felt as if she were turning green, but again ignored her disgust and focused on helping soothe her friends distress. Placing her hands to the pinkette's forehead, Ino let the green hue of her medical chakra flow into her, cooling the fever and ridding her of her vicious migraine; little could be done about the stomach-bug, but that was to be expected.

Thankfully Tsunade arrived on the scene in time with Shizune at her side to prevent Sakura from throwing up any more than she wanted to; which wasn't at all. Once she had been carried gingerly to her shishou's office by said woman, Sakura was placed carefully onto the plush lavender sofa, before Tsunade healed her with a mix of herbal remedies and her medical expertise.

Within the hour, she had been informed that she was to leave and take a few days off until things settled down, and was not to leave her house in case of spreading her 'sickness' to the other villagers; she had little strength to argue, so she just nodded, before exiting the hospital and walking down the path toward her apartment.

At least she'd get to be in her comfortable bed, just as she'd so longed for only a while earlier.

* * *

Blackness. Distorted sounds. Voices. Hushed whispers. Searing pain. Fatigue. What had happened? Where was he? He tried to open his eyes, but they felt like lead, too heavy to pry apart at this point in time; why was he in so much pain? What happened? He couldn't remember... a sudden rush of fluid was injected into his bloodstream, an annoying pinching sensation in his left arm as the serum kicked in; it numbed the pain, and as an extra bonus, lulled the man off into a peaceful slumber.

* * *

Sakura hadn't intended to go there; really, she hadn't—the plan had been to waltz home, soak in a cool bath, and sleep blissfully for fourteen hours of undisturbed rest and recuperation. But she just _had_ to listen to her raging Inner, whom was screaming strings of dirty expletives that were never to be repeated in the wake of minors; so now here she was, in the pharmacist, picking up what she would need for this particular 'test', shuffling anxiously as she placed her purchase and several paper notes onto the cashier's register, praying to Kami that no one would ask questions—she had no such luck.

A busty woman, unusually jovial and optimistic for an early morning such as this, spoke in a boisterous, too-loud voice, alerting all early morning shoppers as to the purpose of her even being there in the first place. "Oh, well would ya lookie here! Someone as young and beautiful as you is _expecting_? Well now dearie, isn't that nice? I'll bet you he'll have eyes like yours! Truly stunning! Or perhaps he'll resemble his father? Sinfully handsome and all that, ne? Loaded too! What I wouldn't give to be so young again—"

The woman just kept blabbing on, rambling all the things that Sakura neither wanted to know or find out, smiling and occasionally looking to Sakura for her opinion; after about three minutes of the woman's inane chatter, the pinkette couldn't take it anymore.

Snatching her bag from the countertop, the rosette bolted out of the store, leaving a flabbergasted desk clerk in her wake.

* * *

Onyx eyes fluttered open, stinging as the painfully bright light made direct contact with the recovering orbs, causing their owner to squint against its ruthless glare; pain was everywhere, not a joint or muscle missing out.

_Trying_ to move would prove to be a fruitless exercise, so he gave up on the futile attempt altogether, praying that the vicious agony would soon numb, become a fleeting nuisance, so that he could return to his usual routine; Kami did he _despise_ hospitals!

A highly amused voice dripping with a sardonic lucidness spoke up, causing the stiff-with-pain man to turn, only to see Tsunade leaning against the wall furthest from him, smirking like she had some sick insight as to what had occurred that he didn't already know; with her smug smile plastered to her lips, the blonde Godaime stepped forward, picking up her patients flow chart whilst reaching out and placing a cool hand to said victim's forehead – which was burning with heat–, to which he was grateful for, and was currently enjoying the relief her touch brought—it sounded rather odd, to say the least, so he thought better of saying it aloud.

"It seems that you have become quite familiar with this bed over the past couple of years, ne, Kakashi? Not that it really surprises me; maybe you should move into it permanently, because at least it would save you the trouble of having to come back and forth between both your apartment and the hospital in general. The mattress on this bed has even developed a body mould that only suits to _your_ build! Meaning that I can't give it to any other patients either; I'd say it was fate, destiny, that brought you and this contraption for lovem—"

"That is not amusing in the slightest, Tsunade-sama, and you should think better of it before bringing it up as a topic for social discussion; it's not as if I _asked_ to be here, let alone _want_ to be, so fair is fair." Kakashi interjected rudely, only widening the expert med-nin's grin more so than what it had started out as; the silver-haired man chose to ignore her mockery, and instead focus on the more serious matter at hand.

"_Tsunade_..." The seriousness in his tone was an indication to the blonde that he meant purely business, and that he wasn't in the mood for any immature jeering sessions, as opposed to his usual, cheerful, childish mannerism. Turning her gaze upon him, Tsunade could only say that she knew what he was going to ask, so she may as well cut in and save the trouble of him having to talk too much; it slightly irked her that he had so much control in his voice, enough to bend even her steel will, and she refused outright to have to subject whatever meaningful pride she had left to the natural leader in him.

"Sasuke is in critical condition, but will eventually stabilise over the course of the next three or four weeks; as for when he will wake up... no one can really tell... could be a day, could be a month—it all really depends on how stubborn he decides to be. Uchiha men, psssht!"

Kakashi chuckled darkly, without humour, as he absorbed the information that had just been presented to him; so Sasuke had managed to survive another day, huh?

"K-Kakashi..." Said man's eyes snapped up to meet Tsunade's... almost... _worried_... expression, honey-brown orbs glowing with more questions than he could answer, but he nodded to let her know that he was listening, urging her to continue; she did.

"H-How did you... manage to... take down Sasuke... I mean, he happens to be _stronger_ than Naruto, no fool could miss that, and you _are_ strong, but that isn't the point! My point is how did you do it?" Kakashi stared at his hands for what seemed like an eternity, before turning his attention to the early signs of dawn, the vast array of daybreak's colours illuminating the prodigy's features as he stated blankly, with no traces of emotion whatsoever, "Simple; _I wasn't the one who did it_."

"Then who...?"

"When we arrived on the scene... it was a bloody bloodbath... The one who did this was _Uchiha Itachi_."

* * *

The loud echoing of the formerly dropped 'test' stick still resided in the eerily silent bathroom; Sakura stood, naked and sodden from her scalding hot shower, in front of her floor to ceiling mirror, looking as if she were about to puke, _again_.

Stumbling forward, Sakura caught hold of the bathroom's vanity bench, eyes wide and wet with tears yet to be properly registered in the rosette's foggy mind; it wasn't possible... how could she have missed the signs? How could she not have noticed that he had never once used any form of—this just couldn't be happening!

The salty sprites spilt from the rims of her eyes, cascading down her gaunt white cheeks and plopping soundlessly onto the pristine white marble of her washroom's sink, meeting their end at the drains grate; the shaking pinkette raised her hand to her face, clutching the right side in an almost brutal fashion, leaving red welts and angry raw skin in its wake; nande? Nande?!

This happened because of all of the times she had allowed him _this_, this form of 'release'; she brought this all upon herself, and now look at the consequences!

She couldn't hide from it, couldn't deny it anymore; Haruno Sakura was _pregnant_ with _Uchiha Sasuke's child_.

* * *

Naruto stood outside the door, contemplating; should he go in? After all, it wasn't just every day that his best friend, _brother_, was dragged back to the village, literally almost beaten to death, without having a majorly bad reason for it; even if he _had_ been injured badly, the teme would probably still have been a stubborn, resistant jackass and made a break for it when the opportunity arose—which only spoke of the severity of his wounds.

And the blonde Rokudaime was unabashedly worried, for both his beloved sensei _and_ his 'brother'; then there was Sakura-chan. She had suddenly taken sick leave, and was refusing any and all forms of interaction with other vaguely human compatriots/creatures; what was so wrong about going to visit, only to be told to 'Fuck off you baka, I'm not well!'?! Man, she needed a few lessons for common courtesy and politeness...

Sighing, Naruto combed a nimble hand through his shaggy blonde locks before sucking in a breath and throwing open the door, exuding confidence; that to which instantly deflated when he saw the state of his fallen friend. "Teme! What the fuck happened to you, man?"

The newly adorned Hokage cussed harshly under his breath, guilt hitting him like tidal waves in a storm; he should have _been there_, to _help_ and _protect_ _him_, and yet he _wasn't_, and look at the result of that. He almost _died_, and Naruto had been sitting idly by, signing paperwork and relaxing behind a large, mahogany desk in a comfy, lilac desk chair; clenching his fists, the blonde sat by Sasuke's side, on the very edge of the bed, and began talking about all sorts of random gossip, hoping to dull the heartache he was currently feeling.

_'I wasn't there by your side when you got hurt... but the least I can do is be here for you while you are recovering... 'cause that's what friends are for, dattebayo...'_

_

* * *

_

"Uchiha... _Itachi_...?"

"Aa. He apparently encountered Sasuke at some point during his travels, and so they just so happened to start a brawl in the pathway of where we coincidently were headed towards; Hyuuga Negara was the one to point out their position, and I as the leader of the ANBU commissioned squad took the liberty of finding out the exact details of what was really happening—that turned out to be my greatest failure. I killed _three men_ because I was too self-absorbed in my own attempt at saving Sasuke from his fate to even recognise the danger and threat that opposed my comrades; what a fool I am..."

"That is not the case Kakashi."

"And why exactly is that, Tsunade?"

"Because this was fated to happen one of these days; you all just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time."

"It was by _my order_ that those men went into that clearing and were ruthlessly slaughtered by the older Uchiha traitor; we were there because _I_ said it to be so, not because it was by sheer coincidence that we encountered them while they were practically ripping each others' throats out. So that will be a mistake that will cost me dearly."

"Would you cut the melodramatic crap? It was misguided judgement that lead us to where we currently are, nothing more, nothing less; you managed to bring home that resentful, loathsome little snake-charmer, didn't you? So be proud of that achievement, mourn for your friends, and move on with your life already! Don't you see that you have three moronic students to be looking after and guiding? So get better so that you can torture them with your lame excuses and polite-dirty innuendos. Got that? Good!"

"Tsunade..."

"Hm?"

"Don't you want to know what the end result of the fight was?"

"Ah? Oh, er, hai, that would be helpful! So... what happened to Itachi? I'm assuming that since you brought only Sasuke back that that means that he got away?"

"No... even better... _he's dead_."

* * *

Obsidian orbs coolly observed their surroundings; white-washed walls, heart monitor, I.V. drip... Aa... he was in a hospital... Konoha's to be specific. Everything was vaguely familiar, from the rickety mattress to the strong odour of antiseptics in the room; but what struck the most to the barely-focused Uchiha was the blonde mop of hair that was calmly rested daringly close to his upper chest, which was aching profusely—he'd have to ask about some effective pain relief later.

_**'Naruto...' **_Sighing inaudibly, Sasuke continued to watch the sleeping figure of his former 'best friend', all the while pondering on the past events, the memories that they had at a time shared with one another.

* * *

Naruto hadn't recalled falling asleep; all he really remembered was being really energetic and optimistic about the teme's recovery, yabbering on like no tomorrow as if the unconscious man could actually hear what he had been saying—that alone would have put _anyone_ to sleep, even an _Uchiha_.

His cerulean eyes burned with the sudden exposure to the fluorescent white lights, water welling as he vainly tried to block it out by squinting; why couldn't he have been smart for once and simply just _closed his eyes_?

A sudden shifting caught Naruto's attention; said blonde stiffened as he watched Sasuke's wrist twitch, before raising slightly above his head... only to be smacked downside his face, a knuckle-burn so bad leaving its mark on his face that had anyone else seen it, they probably would have assumed that he had had a facial wax gone awry.

Raising his azure orbs, Naruto couldn't help but feel the tears well in his eyes as he stared right into the impassive (but highly amused) Uchiha's brilliant onyx ones; without any indication of what he was about to do, Naruto flew forward, crushing Sasuke in the most brutal bear-hug he had ever been on the receiving end of, a pained grunt leaving his lips as he struggled violently against the persistent blonde mop-top.

Kami was this going to be a _long_ day...

* * *

_One week later..._

_

* * *

_

Sakura was out and about, wandering with no particular destination in mind as she all but crashed into her obviously cheery sensei.

"Kaka-sensei! You're out of the hospital!"

With his usual casual smile, Kakashi replied almost endearingly, as if he knew that it had been _her_ that had saved his life, _not_ her shishou. "Aa, yesterday actually; that sensei of yours is one powerhouse of residual anger and violence, I swear. Kind of almost reminds me of someone I used to know..."

The silver-haired man trailed off, obviously lost in thought as the rosette stared in utter confusion; even after all of these years, this man had never failed to surprise and consistently perplex the kunoichi—he was an enigma in himself, that he was.

Rolling her eyes in an almost ironic way, Sakura returned her eyes back to his current condition; he seemed to be healing nicely, thanks to her shishou's constant surveillance. Relieved, Sakura went to question as to the reason of ho he had managed to get so mangled up when a member of the ANBU Black Ops appeared, tense with worry as he bowed politely. Kakashi instantly became serious, eyes hardening to steel grey as he asked as to what the purpose of this interruption was.

What he said tore Sakura's soul away from her body and left it suspended in what was presumably 'hell on earth.'

"Uchiha Sasuke is being sent to trial now; his sentence—_execution_."

* * *

"What the fuck do you think you're doing?! Let go of Sasuke, you bastards, what the fuck has he done to—?!"

"With all due respect, Rokudaime-sama, but he is an S-Ranked criminal with a spot under the most dangerous in the ANBU Bingo Book, and thus has to be held for many accounts, such as treason, murder and defection. It is the law, and he has to be dealt justice in front of our council."

"I don't give a rats ass about that shit! I thought I had already made this perfectly clear that—"

"Unfortunately you have no say in the matter; it is up to us as the council to decide this man's fate, and you abiding him even now only proves your unfitness to rule as the true leader of this country."

"Now you listen here—"

"Enough. There is a way for all this to be resolved, that doesn't involve unjustifiable slaughter on your own account; in fact, the Uchiha can even live here again under no scrutiny whatsoever, if he wishes it."

"And what would this 'alternate exchange' be, Tsunade?"

"Simple; he gives us all the information that we need on our enemies, including Sano and his cronies. That way he will have fulfilled both his allegiance to this country and gained himself a position in the higher-ups."

"Nani?! That is preposterous! We cannot allow such tomfoolery to take place—"

"I'm not making it a suggestion; as the Rokudaime's female advisor, I empower my faith and loyalty to him, and hope that he can trust me to make this a reality.

"See to it, baa-chan. Do whatever it takes."

"Then who will extract the information? It can't _possibly_ be one of our current ANBU interrogators; they wouldn't be able to get a _thing_ out of him, seeing as he will not comply with strangers—"

"Then _I'll_ do it; _I'll_ extract the information."

* * *

"Sakura-chan?!" Naruto turned, only to see the pink haired ninja standing by the doorway, eyes dull, glassy, like she had been crying for prolonged periods of time, and hadn't had the chance to completely recover; that didn't really surprise the blonde, seeing as Sakura must have already heard about Sasuke's alleged 'death sentence'—thank Kami that Tsunade had intervened when she had, otherwise things wouldn't be looking so flash for the former Leaf shinobi. "Sakura, are you sure that this is appropriate? Can you handle it?" Tsunade inquired sternly, hoping that the rosette's resole hadn't yet dwindled; her response did the blonde princess proud. "I am positive that I am the only one here who can get the information you seek."

"What makes you think that the Uchiha will bend to _your_ will? You are but a simple—"

"He _will_ comply with what I ask of him, _that_ I can _assure_ you of." Sakura interjected, cutting off any and all snappy retorts that the new council members had formed in their heads; cursing under their breaths, they left with a simple 'Do what you like', slamming the door and shaking the plaster foundations along with the force of it, silence emerging and consuming the room completely.

"S-Sakura-chan?" Said woman turned to face the anxious Hokage, whom hadn't a clue what had just happened; it seemed that the elders knew more about her situation then they had initially let on—figures. Smiling sadly, Sakura walked over to where her idiotic puppy of a brother waited, eyes alight with curiosity; reaching out, the pinkette took Naruto's large hands into her small, delicate ones, bringing them to first her lips –to which she placed a soft kiss on each individual knuckle–, before proceeding in resting them gently against her left breast, atop her heart.

"There isn't any need to worry, Naruto-kun; I promise to make Sasuke talk, and make sure he escapes his fate and can start a new life here—this is _my_ 'promise of a lifetime' to you, and I never go back on my word, dattebayo." Sakura poked her tongue out a little as a cheeky grin made its way to her face, knowing full well that Naruto hadn't used that word in his speech in several long years; the words that had left her lips only seconds before had Naruto tearing up, the sudden emotions that flooded into him too strong to simply contain and keep at bay—with that, he let a single tear slide down his tanned cheek, plopping to a soundless halt when it came into contact with the linoleum flooring, his trademark smile making its appearance, lighting up his features and portraying him as something godly, to the likes of one.

Leaning forward, Sakura pressed her lips in a firm kiss to the cheek that had been assaulted by the former tear, bringing a dust of pink to his darkened skin, his complexion seeming more prominent from the sudden surge of colour; straightening herself out, Sakura gave a final little departing wave, before following the ANBU escorts to the lone cell that the Uchiha monarch currently inhabited, awaiting his punishment.

They arrived outside the sealed steel door (he was apparently too much of a threat to be left in a normal barred cell), Sakura's heartbeats increasing along with her dead footfalls as she waited for the door to be opened; making several unrecognisable hand-seals, the two upper-ranked shinobi placed their hands to the metal frame, the door emblazoned with a fire-like chakra, burning around their fists, in horizontal, vertical and diagonal directions, sharing a likeness with serpents, as they met the corners of the doors, the chakra tags suddenly exploding, the door slowly creaking open to reveal complete darkness; much like the renegade Uchiha.

With that, the two ANBU bowed and gestured toward the blackened cell, waiting for her to enter so that they could seal the doors once again; with a polite nod in their direction, Sakura proceeded, stepping into the room without any hesitation, even whilst her heart pounded in her chest, surely loud enough to be heard by the out of sight Uchiha—although her breathing and posture was calm and collected, her inner turmoil and chaos was what shone through in the end.

A husky, rough voice spoke up, its usual sultry smoothness lost as the hoarse whisper left his lips.

"What are you doing here, Sakura? I thought that you didn't care about me or my life."

The rosette was taken aback, clearly not expecting him to say such a thing with so much despair locked into the depths of it, but quickly recovered and replied in monotone,

"I am here on official business, nothing more."

"Aa."

"Is that all you have to say? It seems that _the_ Uchiha Sasuke has lost whatever spine he had; a shame really." Sakura spat angrily, annoyed with his counterfeit answer; though what she had said proved to be her downfall.

With the aid of the darkness, and his insanely fast speed, Sasuke shimmered, appearing in front of her without her senses even picking up on the movement; from there, Sasuke threw the rosette against the wall, a loud cry of pain emitted from her throat as she made contact with the stone wall, debris falling along with the kunoichi, whom instantly crumpled to the ground. After a few moments in which the pinkette used to regain her composure, she shakily stood, healing her wounds with what chakra she could gather in her disorientation; once she replaced her cool mask of frosty indifference, she spoke again, hoping to calm him down.

"I guess that that was inappropriate of me; gomenesai. But back to our predicament; I have a proposition for you, so listen up." Sasuke snorted disdainfully, but Sakura ignored it and continued as if she hadn't even heard it.

"The deal is of you offer up all the information that you have obtained about all of our village's enemies, including Sano, then you will be off on probation, and can immediately move back, being recognised as a member of Konohagakure again. So what do you say?" There was a pregnant pause (ironic much?) that lasted several minutes before Sasuke finally spoke, amusement mixed with sardonic mockery dripping from his voice as the words left his mouth.

"What makes you think that I'd willingly do something like that, _Sa-ku-ra_? Do I _really_ have _any_ incentive _at all_ to do something so brash and unruly? Not really. So... what happens now?"

"Simple; I'll just have to persuade you." And with that, Sakura lashed out at the darkness, making direct contact with the more than surprised Uchiha, both bodies falling onto the scaled bed that was propped against the farthest wall, the rosette straddling his waist with her palms pressed to his pecs, ultimately holding Sasuke in his place; he was truly curious as to how she was going to convince him to divulge all that information, so he allowed the movement.

Sakura's heart was now palpitating enough to have it explode inside her chest; she'd already been violated in more than one way by this man, so why was this so different? She would seduce him to get what she wanted, before leaving and informing her shishou and Naruto; it would be best if Sasuke was in the village, especially now since she was carrying his child, for everyone's sakes. So that was what she was to do.

Now that her resolve had been set into concrete, the rosette proceeded in slowly, sensually, running her hands up and down his toned chest, the black of the room fading ever so slightly as the moonlight poured in from the small corner window at the very top of the cell (far too high for even Sasuke to reach without being detected), illuminating his handsome features and leaving his expressions exposed for the kunoichi; Sasuke was shocked to say the least—this was not something that he had been expecting, not in the slightest. But if she thought that she had him cornered, then she was wrong, by far.

"This won't have an effect on me, Sakura; I'm used to the wooing and flirtatious gestures done unto me by the other women I've bedded, so don't bother." It was silent for a moment, before Sakura decided to speak, voice feeble and breaking as she choked out a final plea; let's face it— it was over before it had even begun.

"Onegai... just... tell me... you can't leave... leave _me_... not now... not after—"

"Acting as pathetic as you are isn't going to sway me; I have already decided. I'd rather _die_ than be here with _you_." Sasuke spat angrily, throwing the shaking pinkette off his body and onto the cold stone floor, guilt tearing away at his conscience for how rough and cold he had been; after everything he had done to her, he _deserved_ to die, simply because she deserved _better_ than him, what he could offer her... he couldn't see why she was so insistent upon having him stay with her anyways.

"You... you're always like this... cold, indifferent, apathetic... why is that? Why is it that you can't offer up anything else but hate and spite? Why are you always so cruel? You stole _everything_ that had ever held any meaning to me and _refused_ even the slightest sympathies, the slightest explanation, _regret_! How is that fair, Sasuke? You lost everything too, so you should understand how that feels all too well! You may not think that this isn't the same, but _it_ _is_! What you lost meant everything to you, and what you _forcefully_ tore away from me was everything that I had ever cherished, held close to my heart; so in the end, all you're doing is repeating the pain that Itachi inflicted upon you on others', so that you can shield yourself from the memories it stirs in you, the emotions! You selfish, conceited, son of a—"

"You know nothing about me, so don't speak as if you do!"

"You know what? I think it would be better if you did die, 'cause at least I wouldn't have to put up with the pain of watching _our child_ growing up to become like _you_—"

"Nani?" Sakura stiffened when the realisation finally hit her; she had _sworn_ that she wouldn't tell him, that she would raise the child in secrecy to neglect Sasuke's negative influence upon the infant, that she would—Kami she didn't know anymore! So she just settled with telling him the truth.

"Sasuke... I'm pregnant."

To only further support her claim, Sakura gently clutched her stomach, holding the invisible bump that was soon to be bloated with the unborn baby that grew inside her womb at this very moment, tears spilling from her emerald orbs as the sadness overtook her; he had told her that he'd rather die than stay with her, and whether she was with child or not made no difference, so Sakura decided that it would be best if she just left and pretended that this had never happened.

"I-I'm gonna... leave... _sayonara, Sasuke-kun_..." With that, Sakura turned toward the door, only to be dragged backwards, hitting the bed with a shriek; opening her eyes, emerald met onyx, but what was clear to Sakura was the raw emotion in his eyes, the shock, sorrow and happiness that glowed beneath those endless black holes as they bore into her soul, trying to find confirmation; smiling, Sakura reached out and grabbed his hand, bringing it to her flat stomach, which had a slight bump forming between her pelvic bones and her upper abdomen.

Sasuke's obsidian orbs glowed with curious fascination as he gently rubbed her unnoticeable swelling, tingles from his touch running up her spine, forming a kindling sensation in the pits of her belly that was all too familiar; the Uchiha raised his gaze to meet hers, eyes locking as he let a small, genuine smile grace his lips, a scorching heat forming between her thighs, quickly becoming a liquid wetness that was slightly uncomforting, seeing as her underwear was preventing it from leaving her drenched base entirely.

Squirming, Sasuke noticed her distress, a cute perplexed expression flitting across his face before he noticed the residual heat residing from the space between her legs; smirking, Sasuke let a hand trail down underneath her sundress to her soaked folds, rubbing the swollen vulva through the fabric of her panties, Sakura's head thrashing against the cushion, her chest heaving as she spread her legs wider, gaining him more access.

He was highly amused by her sudden submissiveness, but he definitely wasn't complaining; leaning forward, he closed his mouth around the flesh of her cleavage, sucking lightly as he pushed her panties to the side, plunging in his middle finger, a loud moan escaping as she clutched his biceps, leaving welts in its wake as she lifted her legs over his lower back, gripping his hips as she removed her hands from his arms, only to tug down on his raven locks, keeping a firm hold as she gasped, writhed and moaned throatily.

Sasuke enjoyed her reactions, but wanted even more; removing his mouth from her heated skin, he slid out his finger from her tight walls as he tugged off her underwear, pushing the skirt of her dress up until it exposed her lower stomach, pink curls soaked with her fluids as she all but squirmed in an attempt to aid him in his mission to remove her of her impediment. She wanted him—_badly_. Her eyes were deep forest green as she stared at the concentrating Uchiha, whom was currently fumbling with her bra's clasp, which was harder to undo with the white sundress still intact, but he somehow managed it in less than a minute anyways; ripping the contraption from her body and tossing it to the floor in a pile next to her underwear (and the shirt that had magically ended up on the floor that he had previously been wearing), Sasuke then proceeded to suck on her pert nipples through the skimpy material of her gown, the pinkette wriggling as she stifled her moans; a funny thing occurred to Sakura.

She was about to engage in intercourse.... in the middle of a prison cell. Where there was sure to be guards and the like waiting outside for her to leave. _Terrific_.

"Mmmm...nnhg... Sas...uke... mmmm...-kunnn... iie... hah! Stop... guards... hah! Outside! They could be—"

"Shut up." Sasuke interjected rudely as he attacked her throat with vigour, leaving purplish bruises in his rough and brash inspection, all the while sending his hand toward her lower region in the hopes that she would forget about whatever it was that she had been talking about; and indeed it worked. Two inquisitive fingers slid into her tight passage, a choked gasp stifled by the hand that she had clamped over it; she refused to allow anyone else hear what sort of 'interrogation' she was leading—if news of this broke out, then she would be labelled the village whore, which wasn't something that she wanted to happen. But when he gradually built up an agonisingly slow paced pumping within the swollen aperture, she couldn't withhold them any longer.

"Ah... hah... _hah_! Mmmmnnnggghhaah! Iie! Stop—aaaaaaaahhhhhhhhnn!" His juice-slicked appendages nicked her clit, sending tremors of pleasure into the rosette's stomach, knotting together tautly as she arched upwards, hands once again finding their way to his spiked-up hair, yanking remorselessly as she tried to steady her lust-frenzied body, which seemed to be unresponsive to her demands; her toes kneaded into the linen bed-sheets, clamping down on the thin fabric as she pulled the man atop her closer to her own body, craving his warmth—he was driving her _insane_.

Unfortunately for her, the Uchiha seemed to be too preoccupied with his own activities, nipping on her darkened peaks (which coincidently ended up the colour they were because of his incessant sucking) until she yelped in pain, the lust and hormones escalating until it was a sheet of white haze lining their eyes, bodies aching for more than just the meagre touches of flesh; they needed to be connected, in the most natural and physical way possible, and they needed it now—but not before Sasuke tortured the rosette some more.

Since this next experience wasn't foreign to her, it should be alright for him to do as he pleases, that being making her want him more than anything else; sliding down her body, unclasping her hands from his hair as he went, Sasuke knelt above her sore, aching sex, which was practically _bleeding_ fluids, smirking deviously at her as he slowly lowered himself downwards, so that he hovered above her drenched folds, lifting her legs and throwing them over his shoulders as he closed the distance, not waiting for any sign of resistance as he brought out his tongue and dragged it to the base of her sex, Sakura practically _screaming_ at the sudden contact—this couldn't be happening.

The last time almost very nearly _killed_ her, so how would this time be any different? It could literally cause her to die from shock, slight disgust, and pleasure; this was bad, _very_ bad. But it was too late for regrets, because he plunged his glossa into her tight confines, Sakura jerking away violently, not expecting that nasty surprise; Sasuke simply rested his warm hands on her upper thighs, relaxing and reassuring her that this wasn't as bad as she was making it out to be, and trying to comfort her a little—the gesture alone touched Sakura (literally), so much so that she allowed him to do what he wished, as long as he didn't venture _too_ far out of her comfort zone.

Smirking slightly, the Uchiha got back to work, tongue swirling around her particularly sensitive spot, sending Sakura into oblivion and back, her hands flying out to grip his hair once again, shamefully enough pulling him closer to her groin than she had ever intended, but right now she didn't care; she wanted him, _all_ of him, and dammit was she going to take it for herself—her legs squeezed both his head and cushioned his neck as she let her head fall back onto the hard pillow, her face the vision of pure bliss, an angel in her own way.

Whilst still playing with her swollen clit, Sasuke rubbed her thighs in a gentle circular motion, sending a spine-tingling shiver to the pits of her stomach, setting the thick tightrope ablaze, like a sand timer counting down the minutes, seconds, until the imminent end is finally breached; it was burning away painfully slow, so much so that Sakura's previous theory of dying might plausibly become a very real possibility—her panting only increased when he started sucking on the inner flesh of her almost capsizing sex, her legs quivering as she felt the thread snapping in two.

Initially her orgasm was unexpected; surprising her quite some as she arched upward, clutching Sasuke's head as close as she could whilst she cried out, his name leaving her lips as she collapsed onto the mattress once again; her fluids had at first been seeping at a decent rate, but that all changed when her climax smacked into her like a brick wall—it had all but shamelessly gushed from her, Sasuke luckily prepared for the scenario, had it risen.

He took it all in, managing to not choke on her as he swallowed, lapping up the residual juices from her inner thighs as he raised himself up, unabashedly licking the sticky substance that remained around the edges of his mouth, smeared all down his chin until there was none left, just a very turned-on Uchiha monarch and a spent rosette that was hoping that this was just the beginning; luckily that was the case. Sakura was a shade of crimson that put tomatoes to shame, eyes alight with fiery lust that needed to be quelled as soon as possible—thankfully Sasuke could help her with that.

With his trademark smirk, Sasuke then proceeded in tugging off his pants, Sakura left bashful and shy as she realised that the pants were the _only_ undergarments he had on, his painful erection springing free, naturally positioning itself at her sex's entrance, nudging at the still-swollen aperture's lips as he locked eyes with her, hazy and dark, as he slowly slid in, her loud moan cut off as she choked on the sensation of him completely filling her to the hilt; or at least, she _assumed_ that he was all the way in—she couldn't really tell, thanks to his 'size.' All logical thought was lost, however, when he slowly retracted himself, meeting her soaked base once again as he thrust downwards, maintaining a painfully slow but erotic pace, Sakura's hands clutching the muscles of his back as he pulled out, before jamming himself back into her increasingly tightening passage, grunting at the sheer force he had to apply to his hips in order to do so; how she always managed to be so hot, wet and taut, he didn't know, but that was all forgotten as he drowned in the feelings of pleasure it brought along with it, his head buried into the crook of her neck as their sweat-slicked bodies grinded against one another, tears springing in Sakura's eyes as she realised what they were doing; _'making love.'_

But that couldn't have been possible... could it? Sasuke's member rubbed her clitoris in a teasing manner, Sakura moaning at the sudden contact as she all but cried out, some being expletives that had Sasuke chuckling weakly into the hollow of her throat, obviously amusing him greatly; although it was virtually _killing_ him, Sasuke refused to pick up the pace, as he had to show Sakura _just_ how much she meant to him, hoping that his actions would speak louder than words (not that he had any that he could and or would ever be able to say verbally to her), though right now he didn't want to ruin the moment for her, so he poured all of those unsaid emotions into his ministrations, managing to go slower than he had before, a cry of protest emitted from the unhappy rosette—again he chuckled, before tensing his hips and suddenly jerking downward, thrusting in deeper than her core itself, burying himself as best he could into her taut walls, Sakura both tensing and gasping in surprise.

Smirking, even as the sweat dripped from his forehead and onto her heated flesh, Sasuke slid out, only to repeat the motion, tensing his hips before thrusting in hard, fast and deep, still maintaining his slow, torturous pace, the pinkette's head hanging limply from her neck as she clasped the back of his neck with her left hand and his left scapula with her right; her body shook, signalling her end.

Sasuke noticed her passage tightening until he could barely move, her walls quivering around his pounding cock until she caved in, legs clenching his sides as she came, nails digging into his slightly marred flesh, the new scars on his body yet to completely heal and fade till they were barely distinguishable from his natural skin tone as she gripped him with enough force to break his previously broken and very fragile (at the time) bones, heated liquids pooling and becoming clogged inside herself, seeing as he was too large to get passed unless he left her empty; which wasn't happening, seeing as his libido still wasn't quite satisfied just yet.

As she tried to recover, Sasuke raised her legs up so that they were propped up on his broad shoulders once again, though this time Sakura was lying flat on her back, eyes still readjusting, as well as her sex-filled brain, as he slowly moved forward, only to force himself back into her sore sex, a harsh cry emitted as Sakura realised just what the Uchiha was doing; even after all of that, he still needed to go another round?! Seriously? How much stamina did this man have?!

A strangled moan left her lips as he seemed to sink in even further, this time his whole member fitting into her, although with quite a few problems, such as the fact that he had to be more careful of her inner walls, because they were more vulnerable and easier to permanently damage if he went too hard; pulling out, he sat at her entrance, hands still holding her legs in place, as he slid in slowly, face free of any reserved anger and hate—he seemed to be in heaven, completely content as his face contorted into a mask of pleasure that had Sakura's stamina and energy reserves return to her, forcing her to pull him downward so that she could press a kiss to his forehead, all the while remembering her whole purpose here in the first place; whilst he thrust into her as slowly as he could manage without causing himself too much agony, Sakura spoke to him through the newly established telekinetic bond, asking him what needed to be originally.

'_Sasuke-kun...'_

'_Hn?'_

'_Will you tell me what I need to know? It's so that you can stay here, alive, with everyone else! I don't want to raise this child without his father there to help him.'_

'_On one condition.'_

'_Hai? Nandayo?'_

'_Marry me.'_

'_Huh?!'_

'_I won't have you running off on me after the child is born, and I especially won't tolerate having this infant out of wedlock; my mother had standards when she was alive.'_

'_B-But that's—!'_

'_Doushita? Is there something wrong with marrying me?'_

'_I... Iie, iie, iie, iie, iie, iie, iie! It's not like that...'_

'_Then why not? I can give you everything you need, I'll live, we'll have our baby and live together as a couple; what else could there possibly be?'_

Sakura hesitated, averting his gaze before speaking, aloud for him to hear, all raw emotion clogged in her throat as she rasped out her reason for such reluctance, even as he slowly slid in and out of her no longer sore passage.

"I don't want to marry someone who doesn't love me the way I love them."

The expression that crossed Sasuke's face was impossible to read, and when he stopped pumping into her altogether, she knew that she had said the wrong thing; maybe if she had just been quiet and accepted, then maybe he wouldn't be as clearly 'upset' as he was right now.

But before she could say anything to calm the storm that was brewing, Sasuke spoke, his tone of voice taking Sakura back to her genin days, when Sasuke had still been happy with them.

"It's... _hard_... to say _those_ words... 'cause the last time I did... I only ever told my mom... and my brother... and look at where _that_ got them! And I never even got the chance to tell my father... because I was always too afraid of what he would say back... and I find it... _difficult_... to ever really even _think_ them... but what we just did... _that_... should say enough... those ministrations are the _closest_ thing that I can get to affection, cluing someone in on my emotions... gomen... but I doubt I'll ever really be able to say it verbally... but I hope you can recognise it through how I act... if that's enough to satisfy you..."

Sakura had long since let the tears fall, Sasuke slowly easing out of her so that he could properly have her cling to his hips, positioning himself at her entrance one last time as he looked into her watering emerald orbs.

"So is it a deal?"

Sakura didn't even have to think about it; without any hesitation whatsoever, the rosette nodded, smiling even as the blush spread across her cheeks, his returned smile enough to have her orgasm on the spot had he not already invaded her once again, locking their bodies into a heated confrontation where nothing they said or did would affect the moment—with the knowledge that Sakura had, she could safely conclude that she loved this man, with her whole heart, and that she didn't regret a minute of it.

It may have started off rough, painful, but that all gradually morphed into something more meaningful, and as it was, Sakura finally could safely say that she had saved him, brought him home, that he did indeed love her; and although he'd probably never be able to say it, the pinkette didn't mind a bit.

Sasuke picked up the pace, eventually pounding into her as he finally felt himself reaching his limits, Sakura joining him in complete sync as their bodies moved in a joined rhythm, in unison, the rosette bucking upwards to help him to sink in further, burying his member as deep as he could as he felt her explode, stars and flashes of silvery-white lining her eyes as she screamed out his name for the last time, the Uchiha joining seconds after, spilling his juices into her as he saw silver stars, collapsing in a heap on her breasts as she held him close, stroking his hair in an uncannily similar fashion to his mother when he had been a small child, wiping the sweat from his brow with the tips of her fingers until most of it was gone; the full moon outside filtered in brilliant white light, illuminating the two mangled, exhausted bodies until they were bathed in silver, the sheen of sweat that coated their bodies glistening in the moon's beams as they lay there, chests heaving as they came down from their prolonged high.

Sakura sighed in content, for the first time in a long time feeling happy; a random thought passed through her head, causing her to giggle. When did Sasuke manage to throw off her dress, and without her noticing no less? He truly was an amazing man, that he was.

Smiling, she continued to idly stroke the spent Uchiha's blue-black locks, silky and smooth even when caked with sweat; as soon as her breathing had evened out, Sakura was finally about to let herself drift off to sleep when Sasuke's shifting caught her attention—due to all the sweat their little 'escapade' caused, their bodies stuck together like glue, slightly unpleasant, but still something that she had grown to love about this sort of 'exercise.'

Sasuke was now sitting, back to Sakura, as he ran a hand through his hair, the faint scars of recent events becoming an obvious thing in the pale white light, in no way flawing him; it seemed to make him even more beautiful, now that his skin was slightly marred. The rosette could tell that he was physically drained, and then remembered that he had only a few days earlier been a patient in the hospital, under her care and supervision (for the majority of the time) for various critical injuries; she suddenly felt guilt grow in the pits of her stomach, making her feel nauseous and uneasy—if she kept worrying unnecessarily, then she was very likely going to throw up.

Sasuke's quiet voice cut through the eerie silence, snapping Sakura out of her thoughts long enough to register his words.

"Are you really...? Is it mine?"

As if to reassure him, Sakura sat up, crawling up behind him and wrapping her arms around his waist, pressing a chaste kiss to his shoulder blade as she whispered quietly, "Mochiron. You're the only man I've ever slept with, so it couldn't possibly be someone else's."

The surge of guilt that ran through the Uchiha as he remembered their first encounter, his brutal rape unto her, _everything_... it was _killing_ him to think that he had been so heartless, cruel to her as he had been, but it had happened, and that was how it lead up to this, so he supposed that _some_ good had come out of it... but other than that...

"Sakura... honto gomen... for everything..."

"Iie, it's okay. If that hadn't happened, then neither would this; and I couldn't be happier that it did work out this way. So you don't need to apologise; it's unnecessary." Sakura soothed patiently, pressing one last kiss to his back before lying down again, nausea hitting her like a tonne of bricks; _kuso_, pregnancy sure did have some lofty consequences!

Sasuke turned to see if she was alright, and when she smiled in reply to his unasked question, he simply leaned forward, resting his ear against the firm flesh of her belly as he listened for any signs of life; the small chakra signal that responded to his own told him everything that he needed to know.

Smiling, he leaned forward, kissing the skin tenderly as he gazed somewhat lovingly at the small lump that had formed over the course of the past month, stroking it idly as Sakura watched in utter awe; he was definitely going to make an amazing father, that was for sure.

Returning his onyx orbs to hers, he was surprised to see her crying, that same small smile plastered to her features; slinging his leg over her body, he crawled over her until he was atop her, looking at her with slightly alarmed eyes—he had never been good with emotions, so he was confused as to whether or not she was happy or sad.

"Sakura?"

"I'm fine; just happy is all. And now that you've agreed to talk, you'll be able to stay here with me, and Naruto-kun, and Kaka-sensei, and everyone else! I just... it...! *Hic* I'm so happy!" Sakura sobbed quietly, still smiling even as she futilely tried to wipe the water sprites away; Sasuke leaned in, pressing his thumb to her cheek as he cleared them from her face, awkwardly trying to calm her tumultuous emotions. After a good three minutes, the pinkette had fully recovered from her crying, and went straight into apologising.

"Gomenesai, Sasuke-kun! That was embarrassing and stupid and—"

"Perfectly acceptable to the situation, so calm down. It'll be alright, trust me." Sakura coloured, before nodding once and averting his gaze, allowing his eyes to seek out her plush pink lips, to which he had yet to kiss. Pushing forward, Sasuke cupped her cheek and turned her towards him, eyes slightly lidded as he asked the critical question.

"Can I kiss you?" The rosette's eyes widened; even though she had had sex a good five times now, she still had yet to actually _kiss_ someone, which seemed a little odd, in reverse one might say. Blushing profusely, Sakura slowly nodded, eyes immediately fluttering to a close as his face got closer, his eyes still slightly open as he watched her completely fix hers shut, her long eyelashes clashing with the colours that painted her cheeks as his lips finally met hers; it started out soft, chaste, simply an innocent kiss with little more involved, just a light pressure, and Sasuke knew better than to rush this—even though he had fucked several hundred odd women thus far in his lifetime, immediately dominating and taking control of them, this was different. She was worth the patience, most definitely.

She seemed shy at first, but became compliant after she had had some time to adjust; by this point, Sasuke slowly let his lips part, tongue gently probing her bottom lip, licking over its surface as she stiffened involuntarily, not expecting his movement. As Sasuke went to move away, Sakura's arms slowly wound their way around his neck, left hand buried in his locks and massaging his scalp whilst the other cradled his neck, inevitably pulling him to her; at first she was hesitant, but surely enough she parted her lips, just enough for him to slip his tongue in, roaming slowly around the warm, wet confines of her mouth, brushing past her own tongue as he licked the walls of her small cavern, the rosette shuddering as she pulled him closer, their naked bodies pressed flush against one another as she clambered onto his lap, cupping his face as his arms gripped her hips gently, her own glossa slowly but surely interacting with his; Sakura could practically _taste_ herself on his tongue, but that didn't entirely bother her like she thought it would—in fact, it made the experience slightly more erotic in a sense.

Within seconds it had become something that transcended gentle affection, passion burning through their veins as he threw his weight forwards, Sakura's legs straddling his hips as he continued to kiss her, occasionally stopping for a breath of air, only to continue within barely a millisecond; it seemed like they would never stop—and they didn't. The pair stayed up all night, making up for lost time, his kisses and her screams of ecstasy (they were at it again...) drowning out all else in the universe, leaving just the two of them in their own world of blossoming love.

* * *

Sakura awoke the next morning in a room she didn't recognise, completely naked, and virtually exposed for all to see; pulling covers over her naked frame, the pinkette sat up, taking in her surroundings; humungous bedroom (even larger bed), black silk everywhere, navy blue walls, the Uchiha Crest—Ah, so she was in one of the Uchiha Clan's former houses bedrooms'. Joy. But if she was here, then what about—?

"It looks like you've finally woken up, Sakura; I was kind of worried, seeing as it's been two days since our little 'tryst' in the jail cell." Sakura's emerald orbs snapped up to meet a pair of endless obsidian ones, a highly amused glint in his eyes as he sat fully clothed at the end of the bed, smirking like he was king of the world. Well, he probably was, but that was beside the point.

"How is that my fault when you can't ever fully satisfy that libido of yours? I doubt I'll be able to walk for a week after all that!" Sakura hissed in annoyance, glaring at the still-smug Uchiha, whose smirk only grew wider with her every worded insult toward him.

"Well, that is something that you'll gradually learn to accept, _and_ enjoy, so quit complaining, 'cause you sure weren't _then_." Sakura flushed crimson, turning away as he grinned at her sadistically; when he moved toward her, however, she darted to the other side of the bed, not wanting him to screw her senseless for at least another month—now that she was pregnant...

"Tch, calm down, I'm not gonna bite; I just came to inform you that I am now once again an official member of Konohagakure, and we have also gotten permission from the old hag to get married."

"Don't talk about my shishou like that!"

"She's, what, like sixty?"

"She's fifty-seven!"

"Heh, close enough."

"Acck! Sasuke!"

"Hm?"

"Oh I give up! Go marry someone else!"

"Like hell!"

"Argh! You are so beyond frustrating, you know that?"

"Aa."

"... I hate you..."

And the arguing went on into the afternoon, ending up with the couple having sex so many times that Sakura literally had a restraining order filed against him.

* * *

"Nani?! Sasuke was a _double agent_ for _you_?!" Sakura shrieked as she flung out a patronising finger at her shishou, a vein pulsating on her forehead as she glared steel daggers at the amused blonde; Sasuke stood quietly by the doorframe, leaning against the hardened surface as he always had in the past, smirk ever present as he watched the furious rosette spit profane expletives at her mentor—Kami did he love her new attitude. Feisty and rough.

Now _if only_ he could get that side of her to come out and play in the _bedroom_...

"Aa. It was about half a year ago when Sasuke returned here one night, asking if he could seek shelter here again; I was at first hesitant to grant him any sort of compromise, seeing as he was and until just the other day was _still_ a rogue ninja, but after bargaining a few things, he was allowed to stay here whenever he needed, as long as he wasn't seen by the public, particularly anybody he knew. Turns out that things worked out to be how they currently are, and so I commissioned Sasuke as an unofficial member of the Leaf Village to be a spy for whatever rough 'business' he got into whilst away from Konoha; and our luck paid out the minute Sasuke caught wind of Sano, whom was at that time currently seeking him and his team out, for the many illegal drug trafficking and prostitution rings he had running, as well as a hidden record of unjustified slaughter of innocents and the brutal murders of all previous Feudal Lords. Apparently they didn't approve of his 'activities', and sought to have him close down shop permanently."

Tsunade smirked in amusement, loving the fact that she finally had a decent challenge that she could torture ruthlessly without remorse or mercy, already hearing his screams of agony in her ears as she sat there with her hands clasped beneath her chin, devious intent burning in her caramel orbs; Sakura felt herself deflate as she realised that Sasuke had to have been the insider that had been killing off Sano's men whilst he had let his guard down. It all made sense!

Because of Sano's unwavering trust in the Uchiha relic, he failed to recognise the threat that he posed to his men, especially since none of them were the wiser to his intentions either; bunch of moronic fools! The plan was flawless, ingenious to say the least, and the possibility had never once crossed her mind; what a sad being she was.

"From all of the information Sasuke managed to gather on Sano and his troupe of fools, we have determined his sentence, which obviously happens to be death; it was a good thing that I set him up amidst them and had him kill them off one by one—or as it seems, by half every time, otherwise he would have overrun the systematic balance of things and destroyed our world as we know it. And the Five Great Nations only have one person to thank for that. Because of this, I managed to convince the Feudal Lords' to drop the charges and instead reimburse him for all that he has done for us; adding that to your already staggering Uchiha fortune, it seems you have now just increased your wealth a thousand fold, meaning that you can properly look after Sakura and yourself once things have settled. That, and Naruto is quite anxious to see you again; Kakashi too."

Sighing, Sakura couldn't help but smile as she thought of the hyperactive baka's temperament, and the fact that she had yet to see him after a long couple of days (even though only two had gone by, she still missed her idiotic brother dearly, as well as her father-like model Kaka-sensei); stretching, Tsunade stood, pacing the expanse of her room (not Naruto's Hokage office), contemplating something. When it looked as if she had settled on asking whatever it was that was bothering her, the blonde turned, scrunching her brow in delicate lines as she came out with it, indecisiveness coating her voice in layers.

"Are you two... _really_... getting married?" When they only nodded in reply, Sakura's meek, timid and hurried whilst Sasuke's controlled and fluid, Tsunade growled, cursing her luck to hell (not that she ever had any to begin with).

"Argh, dammit, I'm gonna be a grandma and I'm not even sixty! Now Naruto will have a reason to call me 'baa-chan! Fuck it all!" Sasuke and Sakura both chuckled, amused by Tsunade's annoyance. "All that aside, shishou, don't you mean that you'll be called 'grandma' when we have kids?" The blonde looked at her like she was stupid.

"You _are_ my kid! So _that's_ why I can be called 'baa-chan' anytime from now, by _everyone_! No one fears my wrath 'cause I'm not the Hokage anymore, so now the whole village will be mocking me! I feel so _old_ now that you're gonna tie the knot!" The blonde raged on, apparently unaware of their current 'disposition, and Sasuke just _had_ to go and drop the bombshell, making it _worse_ than it had been before.

"Well it seems that title will be coming _a lot_ sooner than you would like, seeing as Sakura has already conceived."

Everything went eerily silent, not a noise to be heard; after several moments of it, Tsunade had exploded with anger, her threats to turn him into a eunuch echoing throughout the bustling village below.

* * *

"Hurry up, we have to see them off!"

"Oh psssht, they're grown adults, I'm sure that they can understand a _little_ tardiness."

"Even _Kakashi_ arrived there early, being the _first_ guest to make his appearance; if _that_ doesn't say anything to you, then you have to be a complete baka! Now hurry it up! We don't have long till they depart!"

"Alright already! Chill would you, Ino?"

"Tenten—"

"Look! We're here! And there's the happy couple! Sasuke, Sakura-chan, hold up!"

A large group had formed around the newly married patrons, Sakura practically glowing even though her shape had changed slightly; the bump on her stomach had become more prominent, making it hard to wear a skin-tight dress of any sort without people accusing her of getting fat—she was _pregnant_, it came with the territory! There were tears, hugs, kisses and more tears, much loved friends and relatives sobbing as they said their temporary goodbyes; Naruto hadn't left Sasuke's side for a minute, literally cuffing them together until they had to officially depart—Sasuke hadn't been happy about the blonde's callous method of keeping them together, by each others' sides, but that didn't keep the smile from his face.

After what seemed to be forever, the two finally got their chance to leave, a blubbering Naruto and smiling Kakashi following the two to Konoha's gates; they were the only ones permitted to do so, insisted a very stern Sasuke.

As they stood there, a peaceful silence overtaking the serene environment, Sakura couldn't help but feel her resolve not to cry weakening, tears springing to life as she engulfed her sensei into the bear hug of his life, said man grunting from the sheer force of her brute strength; still smiling warmly, he reciprocated, wrapping his arms with just as much power around her now trembling frame, holding her for dear life as she tried her best to calm down; this was a happy day, and it wasn't like they wouldn't be back—they would arrive here to stay in a month or two, but still!

These people meant the most to her, more than anything in the world, and leaving them behind was like she was cutting out a part of herself, therefore slowly killing her in the process; sniffling and choking on her sobs, Sakura straightened, giving him one last affectionate squeeze before turning to Naruto, whom had removed the cuffs and had been saying his own farewell to Sasuke, which involved insults, physical violence, tears and a rather awkward hug, before he fixed his attention on Sakura, tears already spilling over as he all but wailed in her ear, arms squeezing the stuffing out of her as he begged her not to leave, to un-marry teme, and stay with him.

Gods did he make her laugh and feel increasingly guilty, even though he already had a wife!

"SAKURA-CHAN!"

"Calm down, you baka! It isn't forever! When we get back, the first people we wanna see are you and Kaka-sensei; I won't forgive you if you aren't there waiting for us like you always used to! That is your new 'promise of a lifetime' to me, ne?"

Nodding avidly and wiping the tears away with the sleeve of his arm, much like he used to as a child, Naruto smiled in his usual 'you betcha, dattebayo!' sort of way, giving her the thumbs up sign as he grinned, hiding his sorrow behind the pretence that they _would_ come back, and _would_ be waiting for them at Osaka Bridge, their original meeting place; that was his new promise of a lifetime to the Sakura-chan that he had once loved dearly with his whole heart, and still did, but in a different way now.

Kakashi had already had a brief discussion with Sasuke, clapping his hand onto his shoulder with a firm grip, squeezing lightly before letting go, pulling out his porno book and turning to the page he was up to; _some_ things never changed at least.

Just as Naruto was about to say something else that would have surely come off as idiotic, the pair were saved by the arrival of two ANBU, whom informed Naruto that Gaara had arrived and was ready for the meeting between the other five Kages'; with a shaky nod and a tearful glance toward the two, the blonde waved manically, Sakura laughing as she waved back too, watching as he disappeared in a cloud of smoke, Kakashi following immediately after, but not without saying a few parting words of wisdom.

"Sasuke, if you hurt her, I will personally see to it that you have no means of ever procreating any more Uchiha brats into this world and the next for whatever afterlife there may be; I expect you to bring her back safe and unharmed, and most of all happy—after all the crap you did to her, she deserves it, and more. Well, ja!"

Once he had vanished completely from view, Sakura felt the tears fall, already missing them and her home, to which she hadn't even left yet; Sasuke wrapped a comforting arm around her shoulder as she leaned against him for support, her entire frame shaking as the two made it to the gates, walking slowly and drinking in the surroundings of their home—it wasn't an uncomfortable thing for Sasuke to do, seeing as he had already done it several times before, but for the pinkette... It was sure to be hard.

"We'll be back before you know it." Was all he said, but it was enough to comfort the distraught rosette, and allowed her to raise her head high; here was the start of their new journey together, and as he took her hand in his and guided her up the pathway that lead outside of their home, Sakura knew that she had no regrets—because wherever Sasuke was, home was surely there with him. She finally had a reason to smile; she finally found her true source of happiness, which had been buried under many layers like a diamond in the rough.

She was finally...

_Bathed in the rays of sunlight, no longer in the darkness._

_Finally..._

* * *

_~The end~_

* * *

**a/n: Well.... that... was the last chappie of **_**'Fourth time's the Charm.**_**' God... I feel tragically enough... numbed?... by all of this? T-T**

**Sheesh, there's still an epilogue to go man, chill! XD **

**Ha-HA! I inserted some humour into this to lighten the mood, as I have found that after all of the angst it was a decent thing to do, and I had initially thought of prolonging it, but this chapter came out longer than planned (42 pages in Microsoft Word); not as long as my chapters in _'Chasing Your Shadow' _(which round off to about 85-100 pages per singular chapter), but still! The concept and principle still applies guys! ^^**

**Please review for this; I worked so hard to get this one right for you all, and I would really appreciate what your opinions of this piece are after its publication.**

**Next one isn't official, but I thought that ending on another more pleasant, lemony (yes, there shall be more lemons! XP) note would sound better, more appealing, so please hang around for that one; you will notice that when I finish that chapter off, I will have **_**'owarimashita'**_** written at the end—that signals its completed-ness, that there will be **_**no**_** sequels or whatever after that. THE FINAL CLIMATIC ENDING. Thank you all _so _much for supporting me on this journey; it really means a lot!**

**So, for the semi-last –coughofficialcough- time, arigato gozaimasu ne, and please drop in a comment! ^.-**

**Ja! **

***-Sasukeluva 4eva out-***


	6. Epilogue: Starting Over

**a/n: Mwahahahaha! I'M BACK! I betcha thought I'd died in a ditch somewhere, ne? Lol, never mind all that! Here I give to you the FINAL climatic end to **_**'Fourth time's the Charm'**_**; man, this feels extremely awkward and foreign... oh well, I assume that this is normal! Anyways! I hope you enjoy this epilogue, even in its brief shortness (as I have assumed, heheh!). Without further adieu (that last time I'll **_**ever**_** get to say that to this story), I hereby present to you the epilogue; enjoy, and arigato gozaimashite! **

**Disclaimer: WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHH, I OWN NOTHING! Only this plot and storyline! =3 If I did, then Sasuke-kun would currently be wiping the floor with Madara, Itachi and the Uchiha clan would still be alive, and Naruto would be furiously stamping and filing papers behind the Hokage's desk!**

* * *

Epilogue

Starting Over

* * *

"Mmmmmmmmnnn... aaaahhh...hah! Sa...su...ke...-kun! Yamete!" Sakura choked out through strangled moans, emerald orbs glowing in the moonlit room as she gazed down at the man beneath her, whom was currently too preoccupied with fondling with her breasts to notice her distress; his smooth thumbs rubbed the soft flesh gingerly, before pinching her hardened peaks between his fingers, squeezing them reflexively as his mouth kissed the flesh of her exposed throat, tongue tracing the contours of her collarbone, jugular, mandible, making his descent upon her lips within seconds of his exploration, his long dark eyelashes remaining lidded as he watched the rosette's cheeks flush scarlet—he never got tired of her reactions, no matter how repetitive they seemingly became.

Sasuke's tongue gently brushed against her bottom lip, forcing her lips apart as he slid the inquisitive muscle into her wet confines, overtaking her space and intruding with very little regard of her feelings; he didn't need to ask—he already knew. Sakura gave him permission without hesitation or thought, tilting her head to the side as she clutched his face between her palms, fingers gripping his inky locks as she sidled onto his crotch, the very familiar bulge of his arousal probing at her drenched entrance; you would think that she would be used to it by now, but unfortunately it seemed to be quite the opposite—the fact that he had a penis _at all_ (a/n: direct blow to his ego! Though I for one can tell you for a fact that he _does_ have one, and a very nice appendage at that, heheh!) still eluded Sakura's perception of things.

A startled gasp left her lips as she felt the raven haired Uchiha's slim appendages slide into her tight passage, kneading her swollen aperture impertinently as he smirked into their heated kiss; every time he did this, it seemed to draw out a different reaction—there was one point where she herself had literally forced his hand to that particular region, but he wasn't going to disclose the facts. Sakura squirmed feebly as she tried to push him away, only to have him slowly pump his fingers in and out of her, said woman stiffening as she tried to lower her voice; it wouldn't be good if she became too loud—

"Aaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhnnnn!" Sakura screamed as she threw her head back, completely shattering her ideal of not making too much noise; at this rate, they might—

The familiar prodding sensation at her dripping folds told her everything that she needed to know; Sasuke intended to go all the way, whether she was for it or otherwise, and normally under any other circumstances she would have more than happily complied, but because of _this_... it couldn't happen!

But it was too late for her to complain.

Sasuke brought her hips down with painful accuracy, the pinkette sinking onto him almost instantaneously as he jammed himself within her core, her taut walls gripping his member as he raised her up, only to pull her down with the same brute strength, prominent squelching noises echoing in the near-silent room as his pre-cum mixed with her fluids, flowing down his erect cock, smearing onto his toned abs, remaining there as he abruptly scooted upward, until he was in a decent sitting position, his toned legs gripping her sides as he clutched her rear, guiding her pelvis forward so that she was grinding off and against him, his grunts inaudible next to her cries of pleasure; she was putty in his hands, and as much as the situation didn't call for it, she couldn't help but surrender to him and her traitorous body, his constant, deep penetrations causing her mind to go blank and her vision blurry, hazed—his libido and sex drive was out of the fucking universe!

Sakura's hands found their way to his shoulders as she meekly tried to regain some of her composure, but to no avail; his hard thrusts were nearly _killing_ her, and she wasn't sure if she could handle any more of the building pleasure.

Sasuke's hands still clutched her wide, curvy hips, rocking her forward so that she continually sunk onto his member, which still throbbed with excess blood, his teeth nibbling on the flesh of her earlobe as their sweat mingled and became one, their heated bodies sticking together from the sudden humid conditions they had surrounded themselves with; Sakura mewled feebly as she started to pick up on his rhythm, her pelvis acting on its own accord as she bucked into him, causing him to inevitably ram himself deeper inside her than he had been before, her body rolling in a vivacious manner as her head fell backwards, her chest heaving upward in a very provocative manner, Sasuke's onyx orbs fixed to the sight of her breasts bouncing up and down before his very eyes—after several prolonged moments of watching the two soft, large mounds sway affront him, he decided offhandedly to suck on them.

Taking the left peak in between his front teeth, Sasuke lathered the pert nipple with his tongue, whilst idly trailing his left hand to her remaining breast, squeezing and probing at it gently as she thrust forward, his right hand still clutching her ass as he aided in applying more force to her hip movements; at this point, his mouth had already found hers, all the while leaving painfully bruising love bites in his wake (Sakura had yet to teach him how to do it more carefully)—her arms snaked around his neck as he tensed his pelvis, thrusting hard as he bit her bottom lip, drawing blood as he came, tugging at her long bubblegum locks until her throat was visible for his attack, white surging behind his lids as he rode off his high, Sakura still desperately trying to attain hers, with little success.

Her moans of protest only grew as she felt his semen spill and gather inside of her swollen clit, smothering it as his strength seemed to waver a little, only to have him, prop himself upwards fully, bracing her hips against his as he allowed her to find her end, head buried in the crook of her shoulder, hair and lips brushing lightly against her slick skin as she continued to ride him, chest tightening as the familiar bubbling sensation kindled in her belly.

The tightrope was taut and frail, only needing a few more thrusts before she climaxed, so Sakura poured all of her energy into her next few grinds, hoping that it would all be over before Sasuke needed to go again; she could feel his penis hardening quite rapidly, and if she couldn't cum soon, then trouble was sure to ensue—and she had at some stage rendered herself frigid with no stamina or libido. How comically _laughable_ that was now.

The rosette forced him deeper and deeper, until he was buried hilt deep in her most sacred of places, the muscles contracting powerfully around his member as the thread was set ablaze, rapidly burning through until it met its end, snapping violently in two as the pinkette arched her back, screaming out several profane expletives, before renewing them with his name dying on her lips; blinding white light seared behind her open orbs, everything distorted and ephemeral as her juices smothered his appendage, now half-erect but easily dealt with without the need of intercourse—thank Kami!

Her heavy breathing and laboured pants was all that Sasuke needed to hear before rolling them over, so that she was lying on her back on the large mattress, the raven haired Uchiha pulling out of her so that all of the accumulating love fluids spilt out onto the under-covers of the bed, a sticky mess that would need to be cleaned up in the later hours of the morning; sighing, Sasuke collapsed to her side, spent, head buried in the cushions as he controlled his hectic breathing—Sakura always managed to give him a good workout, that was for sure.

As their breathing evened out, Sakura rolled onto her side so that she could throw an arm over the Uchiha's chest, seeing as he had rolled over onto his back somewhere within the ten second interval, her hand finding its way to his left shoulder and her head the crook of his neck, to which he instinctively rested his head, on top of her pink mop; it was the first time in a good four months that they had been able to make love, and it had been well-deserved. Now it seemed that they would finally be able to get some much needed sleep—

An ear splitting cry echoed throughout the now-silent house, jolting Sakura from her drowsiness as she clambered upwards, only to be pulled back to straddle a certain Uchiha-that-was-now-her-husband, his tired but lazy smirk making its way to his face as he almost very nearly commanded her not to leave.

"It'll be fine; just leave it for a few seconds..."

"Your _son_ is not an 'it', _he_ is a _person_ and he _needs_ me! Now let me go you possessive—"

"Am I not entitled to be possessive of my own wife?" Sasuke deadpanned bluntly, his obsidian orbs watching her with keen interest even whilst he smiled smugly; Sakura was at a loss for words, before regaining her composure and stating simply, "In any other situation, yes, but when it involves _our child_, then no, you don't have any right. Now I am going to tend to him and—"

"You really must loathe my attention then? It's almost as if you love him more than me." Sasuke stated calmly, his eyes narrowed and calculating as they bored into Sakura's surprised and hurt ones; she hadn't expected him to say something as cruel and demanding as that, especially when it involved whom she cared about more—she loved them both, and dividing that would virtually be impossible.

"Sasuke-kun, you _know_ that I love you, I _always_ stress this point! But _he_ _is your son_ _too_, and I think that it is only fair that I show him the same attention that I pay you. So onegai! Yamete! Being this ridiculous about something so petty won't get you anywhere!" Sakura exclaimed tirelessly, slightly annoyed that he thought that she valued their child over him; of course she loved him with equal fervour—even slightly more so, no matter how harsh that sounded toward her son.

After all, her heart had always been in his grasp, ever since she had been a child herself.

Sakura pressed a chaste kiss to his forehead, before sidling off his lap and toward the edge of the bed, where she slid off and headed into the room opposite, opening the door as quietly as she could; within seconds the sobbing died down. Sasuke relaxed his frame, allowing his eyes to close as he heard the distinct shuffling of feet on the carpeted floor, the door to their bedroom closing as Sakura cooed quietly at the small bundle in her arms, carefully sitting on the bed so that she was close to Sasuke's stilled figure; she didn't want him to think that she valued either above the other, and wanted to maintain the proximity—it made her feel increasingly guilty that she was invoking no response from Sasuke at all, whom was quite content in ignoring her.

It was only when the small infant in her arms screamed loudly that Sasuke stirred, visibly tensing as his sign of showing that he had been startled; the relief that washed over the rosette was astonishing—he had been dozing off! Sighing to herself, Sakura crawled closer to the now very alert male across from her, all the while trying to quell the sobs of the upset child in her embrace; Sasuke watched with keen awareness, his onyx orbs instantly softening as Sakura closed the distance between them, until she was plastered to his side, the three month baby crying incessantly.

With his trademark smirk, which came off closer to a smile when faced with his son, Sasuke gingerly removed him from Sakura's arms, said woman looking up at him in befuddlement, only to then smile warmly as she watched the raven haired man interact with the infant; he was a natural born father, that he was.

The child went from screeching to grinning in seconds, his small, chubby hands reaching up to touch Sasuke's face, tug on his long bangs, which were needing a trim desperately at this point; Sasuke could only smile, pressing his lips to the child's forehead, said infant giggling as he clasped the Uchiha monarch's hair, gripping it tightly as if he weren't going to let go, cooing and tittering like there was no tomorrow as Sasuke blew against his small stomach, smiling into the child's belly as he squirmed and kicked—Sakura could only sit there amused by it all.

After a few moments, the child let go, only to start crying again, but Sasuke already knew why this was so; he turned his heated gaze to the pinkette, whom became worried as to the nature of the way he was gazing at her—the smirk that adorned his features only proved to serve and fuel her worries.

"_Sa-ku-ra_, Ichiro* is hungry."

Almost as if the child was agreeing with his father, little Ichiro cried louder, the growling in his tummy only increasing in volume; Sakura flushed crimson, before holding her arms out for him, and Sasuke complied, albeit hesitantly, carefully placing the small infant in her embrace—with that her instincts took over, and she raised Ichiro to her erect peak, the child instantly clamping his mouth to her left breast.

Letting out a spent sigh, Sakura closed her eyes, the weariness overpowering; a sudden shifting in movement caused the rosette to yelp on surprise—Sasuke had lifted her onto his lap, clutching her hips fondly as he gazed up at her with a predatory lust. "Since you love the both of us as equals, I suppose it's only fitting for me to join in on the festivities." Sakura's eyes widened in alarm as his mouth descended upon her remaining mound, tongue tracing circles around her nipple, smirk ever-present as she wriggled around in his grip; relaxing, Sakura couldn't help but remember something that she had been meaning to tell him—as she went to say it though, Sasuke's wandering appendages made a pit-stop at her heated folds, the lips themselves become gradually soaked through as his fingers danced around the hot flesh, teasing her in an unbecoming manner—why was he so cruel?

"Hmmm, I think I'll have a little fun." Was all he said before he plunged in three digits, the slim appendages kneading her taut walls once again as the liquids that had accumulated dripped shamelessly down her thighs; Sakura moaned throatily, maintaining her hold on Ichiro as she sought out Sasuke's shoulder with her right hand, clutching it as she allowed her head to loll back until her face stared at the ceiling above.

"We should really start thinking about giving our son a sibling, hn?" Sasuke whispered hoarsely into her ear, causing her to shudder in response; a small smile made its way to her plush pink lips as she found his eyes, and locked with them—what she said next couldn't have kept the smile from his face even if he had tried.

"Well, I think we should start naming him, seeing as he'll be here in another seven months."

That was all that needed to be said, because the next thing Sakura knew, he was kissing her furiously, slight urgency detectable as he laced her with many chaste kisses, only to deepen them when she moved forward; Sakura shed tears, and Sasuke wiped them away, and through it all neither for a moment let their smiles go—Ichiro shifted restlessly, grinning up at his parents as they stared back at him, both resting each others' foreheads against one another's.

After everything that had happened over the course of the past two and a half years, it seemed that everything was finally changing, looking up for them, and in their minds they both knew that what they had found was true happiness, and that no matter what they endured in the future, neither one would let go of what they held valuable to them, let go of each other; simply because they had finally started anew—and most of all, they both had each other; this time, Sakura knew for certain that she would finally retain her lost innocence, and allow it to bloom within her children for many years to come.

* * *

_~Owarimashita~_

* * *

**a/n: Here it is, the end of 'First time's the Charm'! Man, I feel so... tragically enough... saddened?... by this fact? Ha, on a lighter note, I wrote the smut scene whilst listening to a scream/metal song, and the rest to a really sad one; I wonder where my music preferences come from...? Anyways, the songs were **_**'The Wonders At Your Feet'**_** by **Dark Tranquility** and **_**'Aikouhenno'**_**, a **Naruto Shippuden OST**, if any of you are vaguely interested! ^.-**

**Well, I guess I have prolonged this author's note for FAR TOO LONG, and should just conclude this fanfic. *sniffle* Sayonara 'Fourth time's the Charm'! It was a pleasure writing and creating you, and I hope that you, the readers, have enjoyed this journey through and through; I know that I definitely have!**

**So for the last time, arigato gozaimasu ne minna for reading! Please review, as it will make this evil, decrepit 'Lawliet' vampire most happy! Kekekekekekekek! –Ryuuk inspired moment-**

**PLEEEAAAASSSEE REVIEW! XD**

**Ja! x)**

***-Sasukeluva 4eva out-***

**P.S. Please read my other fics; I would greatly appreciate it for those who don't already! =D**

_*Ichiro= means 'first son' in Japanese!_


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